COMMUNITY FAIR TRADE

SHEA BUTTER FROM GHANA

PROVIDING FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE FOR GHANAIAN WOMEN

We’ve sourced Community Fair Trade shea butter from Tungteiya Women’s Association in northern Ghana since 1994. 640 women from 11 villages handcraft shea butter using an 18-stage process of traditional techniques, passed from mother to daughter for generations.

Receiving a fair price is providing an independent income for the women, and also helping to empower them through increased confidence and respect in their community. We also pay a premium price to help fund community projects that positively impact the lives of 49,000 people across 11 villages in the wider community. Long-term investment has enabled the community to build 7 schools that educate approximately 1,200 students every year, and provide access to safe water and healthcare facilities.

GIFT PAPER AND BOXES FROM NEPAL

PIONEERING EDUCATION AND OUTREACH INITIATIVES

Our Community Fair Trade handcrafted paper and gift packaging is sustainably sourced from Get Paper Industry in Kathmandu, Nepal. We’re really proud to have worked with GPI since 1989. These pro artisans use waste and recycled materials (like cotton off-cuts and banana tree stems) to create the paper.

GPI employ more women than men and pay them a fair, equal wage, making sure they receive equal benefits. They’ve also pioneered social projects to benefit the whole community around Bansbari. They helped send children from the poorest families to school, and raised education levels for girls through their ‘Send Your Daughters to School’ campaign and scholarships.

In recent years, GPI have pioneered initiatives to raise awareness of human trafficking through facilitating girls’ groups in local villages. They’re now also using their voice on a wider scale, by organising nationwide school essay competitions on the topic of human trafficking.

RECYCLED PLASTIC FROM INDIA

TACKLING THE PLASTIC CRISIS DIFFERENTLY

An estimated 3 billion people around the world live in countries without formal waste management – that’s almost half the planet’s population. This has led to an estimated 1.5 million ‘waste pickers’ - unsung heroes who work tirelessly to clean up their city’s streets in this informal sector. Waste pickers are mostly made up of ‘dalits’ (formally known as ‘untouchables’), the lowest social group in India’s caste system. This means that they are vulnerable to discrimination, exploitation and poor working conditions.

In 2019, we launched our Community Fair Trade partnership with Plastics for Change to buy recycled plastic from waste pickers in India, to use in our plastic packaging. Our trade provides a fair price for plastic in a notoriously exploitative industry, giving vital stability to marginalised waste pickers. The initiative won Ethical Corporation’s 2019 ‘Plastics Innovation Award’ and has been recognised in the industry for its unique approach to addressing both the environmental and human side of the plastic crisis.