This year is important for Fairtrade, as it marks the 25th Anniversary of the Fairtrade Mark. In reality, every time we shop is important, because with every purchase we make, we are making a choice.
With that choice we either help some of the most marginalised people in our world - or we ignore their plight.
My fair trade journey began in 1984, watching the terrible pictures of the Ethiopian famine on TV. With so many others, I was moved to help alleviate such suffering.
With others in my church, St Mary’s Hamilton, we started a SCIAF group to raise money. That in turn led us to investigate the causes of poverty in the developing world. And of course, one of the main causes is the greed of the developed world.
In the 1990s, we set up a Traidcraft stall in the church, supplied by a lovely lady from Strathaven, on a sale or return basis. This was very successful and from there I contacted Traidcraft and became a Traidcraft Fairtrader. We then supplied other churches and local schools on a sale or return basis. Our little group became one of the top selling Traidcraft groups in the country.
By 2002, Strathaven and Aberfeldy became the first two Fairtrade towns in Scotland. A discussion between Hamilton Fairtraders and our neighbours in Strathaven gave us the know-how to form a Fairtade Town committee, and Hamilton became a Fairtrade Town in 2004.
The following year there were moves to make Scotland a Fairtrade Nation, and in 2006 the Scottish Fairtrade Forum was formed. I was fortunate to be a member of the first Scottish Fairtrade Forum Steering group, representing both Justice and Peace and Traidcraft Fairtraders. Scotland became a Fairtrade Nation in 2013 and the rest, as they say, is history.
I feel that in the early 2000s, Fairtrade was at its most vibrant. During Fairtrade Fortnight all the supermarkets put on Fairtrade displays without any prompting. But for the last few years you would be hard pushed to find a display in any supermarket, with perhaps the exception of the Co-op.
Why? Could Fairtrade sales have reached their peak? I am not sure this is true. I think that today we need to redouble our efforts to ensure we buy ethically. If our supermarket, local shop or cafe is not selling fairtrade then we need to ask why. If there’s no joy, we have to be proactive and shop elsewhere. Our wallets are the most important weapons we have.
The theme of this year’s Fairtrade Fortnight is ‘She deserves better’, and ‘she’, representing producers in the developing world, certainly does. They all deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, so let’s use our consumer power to stop exploitation.
I was very humbled recently to receive the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Scottish Fairtrade Forum. This honour would not have been possible without the many people I have worked with over the years and I am indebted to all of them. There are so many unsung heroes in the Fairtrade movement, and I stand on the shoulder of giants.