Responding to the changes in the UK Government’s senior ministerial team, Tim Aldred, Head of Policy at the Fairtrade Foundation, said:
‘The Fairtrade Foundation welcomes Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP to her new position as International Trade Secretary, at this critical moment for UK trade. As the UK negotiates new trading relationships, much is at stake. Fairtrade farmers are experiencing disruption to production now from the climate crisis, combined with the ongoing challenges from the pandemic. This is a threat both to their livelihoods and to UK food security.
‘It is vital that UK trade policy gives strong support for efforts to halt global heating, to recovery from the pandemic, to building resilience and sustainable trade with the communities around the world who supply the UK’s supermarket shelves. Ms Trevelyan brings important experience from her work as a minister on both climate action and international development, which can be brought to bear. We look forward to dialogue on these and other vital issues as she takes up her new responsibilities.’
He continued: ‘The Fairtrade Foundation welcomes Liz Truss MP to her new role at the FCDO. Her immediate priorities must include the climate emergency and the upcoming COP26 summit in Glasgow, to ensure that the farmers and workers who grow much of our food in low-income countries receive the proper support they need to withstand the worst effects of climate change.
‘Fairtrade farming communities are also facing critical needs after COVID, including vaccine provision, public health and economic recovery, and this also needs to be high priority.’
ENDS
For further information contact Tomilola Ajayi, Senior Media and Communications Manager: tomilola.ajayi@fairtrade.org.uk
Notes to editors
The international Fairtrade system exists to end poverty through trade. The Fairtrade Foundation is an independent certification body and NGO which licenses the use of the FAIRTRADE Mark on more than 6,000 products which meet its rigorous social, economic and environmental standards. This independent label signifies to consumers that farmers and workers across 75 developing countries are getting a better deal from trade.
Today, more than 1.6 million people who work hard to produce coffee, tea, cocoa, bananas, wines, flowers, cotton, gold and many other products benefit from Fairtrade, which campaigns for as well as enables a fairer system of global trade.
Beyond certification, the Fairtrade Foundation is deepening its impact by delivering specialist programmes to help disadvantaged communities boost productivity in the face of challenges such as climate change.