South West Fairtrade Business Awards Winners Announced!

The Best Fairtrade Business in the South West 2016 is Lee Abbey Fellowship in Devon.

The results were announced at a ceremony on Friday 11th March at the At-Bristol Science Centre, hosted by ethical beauty and wellbeing expert, Liz Earle MBE, who recently launched a range of Fairtrade Gold jewellery in association with Cred Jewellery.  The event was opened by Molly Scott Cato MEP.

Other category winners included Bristol-based Greenhouse Bed and Breakfast and Minuteman Press. Other winners from across the region are Fair’s Fair in Barnstaple, Full of Beans café at UWE, Erica Sharpe Fine Jewellery in Wedmore and City College Plymouth. Winners of each category receive a unique trophy designed by Bristol Blue Glass, presented by a range of local VIPs, including Alastair Sawday, and Clare McGinn from the BBC.

The Best Fairtrade Advocate, sponsored by the SWTUC, is Sophie Luxon of Computershare in Bristol. She runs Fairtrade stalls at work and has persuaded not just her own company, but also neighbouring companies, to switch to using Fairtrade products!

The 68 shortlisted businesses have between them spent nearly £500,000 on Fairtrade products, making a massive difference to the lives of producers in developing countries.

Liz Earle spoke eloquently about the massive difference Fairtrade makes to gold miners and was delighted to see her jewellery range at local jewellers, John Titcombe.
The Fairtrade Brunch and Business to Business Networking at the Ceremony was sponsored by charity Shared Interest Foundation, which supports fair trade businesses in developing countries.

The ceremony was the culmination of Fairtrade Fortnight celebrations in the region. It forms part of the Sit Down for Breakfast, Stand Up for Farmers campaign, highlighting the fact that many farmers in developing countries provide food for us, but don’t get paid enough to feed their own families - an injustice Fairtrade seeks to redress.

Businesses that use and sell Fairtrade products make a significant contribution to reducing poverty in developing countries and helping achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Fairtrade also enables businesses to achieve transparency in supply chains demanded by the Modern Slavery Act 2015.