Ilkley continues its support for Fairtrade

Brew It Fair this Fairtrade Fortnight. Ilkley Fairtrade Group Deputy Ilkley Town Mayor Cllr Simmonds [Photo Ellis Br]

Ilkley was first awarded Fairtrade Town status in 2006, and it was a Fairtrade Foundation requirement for the local council to be involved and lend its support to a town’s Fairtrade campaign.

At this month’s full Council meeting, Ilkley Town Council unanimously voted to continue its support for Ilkley Fairtrade Group and Fairtrade.

Cllr Linda Brown, Ilkley Town Council’s representative on Ilkley Fairtrade Group’s steering committee, said:

“I am really pleased that Ilkley Town Council has reiterated its wholehearted support for Fairtrade in the town. I have been impressed by Ilkley Fairtrade Group’s commitment to educating us all about what better trade can, and should, look like.”

Ilkley Town Council’s renewed commitment to supporting Fairtrade was further demonstrated when Deputy Town Mayor, Cllr Amand Simmonds, joined Ilkley Fairtrade Group members to promote this year’s Fairtrade Fortnight campaign. The campaign’s theme is ‘Do It Fair’ and Fairtrade Fortnight runs from 22^nd September to 5^th October. Fairtrade supporters are reminding everyone that purchases of Fairtrade items such as tea, coffee, bananas and chocolate can help provide fairer pay, fairer treatment and fairer futures for farmers and workers in less developed countries. There is a special focus on the tea industry, where farmers and workers often face low wages, climate challenges, and unfair trading conditions.

Fairtrade tea parties are being organised across the country to shine a spotlight on the human and environmental costs behind Britain’s favourite brew. Church members and Fairtrade supporters at Christchurch in Ilkley are holding a ‘Brew It Fair’ tea party and Fairtrade tea tasting event on Saturday, 4^th October. It is being held in Christchurch Lower Hall from 2-4pm.

Chair of Ilkley Fairtrade Group, Karen Palframan, commented:

“We’re delighted that Ilkley residents have the opportunity to try a wide range of Fairtrade teas, and will hopefully find one they love and want to swap to. The local supermarkets and Ilkley Oxfam all stock a range of Fairtrade tea. Each Fairtrade purchase will contribute directly to more sustainable global trade, at a time when many tea growers are facing lower yields, harsher conditions and rising poverty. The Fairtrade Foundation’s website has extensive information, https://www.fairtrade.net/uk-en.html, and you’ll also find a ‘Brew It Fair’ petition to ask the government for new legislation to require businesses to protect human rights and the environment in their supply chains.

"The international Fairtrade movement unites all sectors of society, and we are very grateful to Ilkley Town Council for their on-going support for Fairtrade and Ilkley Fairtrade Group. It is part of the widespread support that exists in our town for fairness in all aspects of global trade. Do it fair this Fairtrade Fortnight and swap to Fairtrade tea to provide social, economic and environmental justice for those who have produced it”.