Hackney businesses go ethical

Businesses across Hackney have taken part in a drive to guarantee a better deal for developing countries by urging consumers to change their shopping habits, writes Liz Gyekye.

Fair Trade fortnight, which continues this week, has already seen big retailers such as Sainbury’s in Dalston and Tesco in Homerton selling and promoting the products.

The council wants to encourage as many firms as possible to sign up to the scheme in order to cement its position as an official fair trade borough. But not all business leaders have joined, claiming the council is imposing a politically correct initiative that is difficult to implement.

Lee Wild, duty manager from Sainsbury’s in Dalston, said: “At the end of April all our bananas will be Fair Trade. We will be moving heavily into the market and our buyers will spend a lot of time visiting people in developing countries.”

The Mother Earthm, a Stoke Newington health shop, stocks a variety of the products.

One of its best selling products is its Fair Trade Palestinian olive oil, called Zaytoun. “These olives come from trees that are over 1,000 years old. We are one of the few retailers in the UK to stock it and we are giving a market for the oil in a positive way.

A business committed to fair trade must sell and use fair trade products as much as it can.

For Hackney to achieve Fair Trade status it must pass five goals:

- the council is required to serve Fair Trade tea and coffees at meetings
- fair trade products must be available in local cafes
- local work places such as hairdressers must endorse the products
- popular support must be obtained
- and a local steering group must be committed to the town achieving Fair Trade status.

Councillor Ian Rathbone, Labour Party member for the Leadbridge Ward admitted support is still limited but insisted the movement is growing all the time. He said: “Many people in Hackney want to help and pay a few pence more.”

Mischa Borris, Green Party Councillor for Clissold, said: “As the demand for fair trade increases, retailers who do not stock fair trade will lose out.

“They realise there's a demand and if they don't stock it someone else will.”

Zeta Lakhali, volunteer at the Fair Trade Foundation charity, said: “All businesses that comply are included and we try to get as many people as possible. But we will not force them to comply.”

But some businesses remain sceptical about the benefit of stocking Fair Trade products. James Warren, co-owner of Contact Hairdressing, said: “It is definitely hard for us to use Fair Trade products. For instance, take colouring: if we are to provide the best colours to use for our clients they would prefer to use L’Oreal. We are not in control of what L’Oreal do.”

UK sales of Fair Trade products amounted to less then 0.2% of total grocery sales, according to the Institute of Grocery Distribution’s UK grocery retailing 2006 report. Brands such as PG Tips and Tetley still have a hold on the tea market - and fair trade tea accounts for less than 2%.

Big businesses are increasingly realising the branding potential of ethical products and many are scrambling to cash in. Cadbury’s recently acquired the Green and Blacks fair trade chocolate brand.

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