Fair dealing for a sustainable future: the case for Fairtrade and local
A Day Conference
Friday 4th November 2011, Rheged, Penrith
9.45am to 4pm.
Cumbrian farmers and food producers face a range of challenges which include: poor milk prices; increasing costs of farming inputs; increasing costs of distribution; reluctance of retailers to market local products; insufficient awareness by the public of local products and insufficient commitment to buy them, and inadequate commitment from the public sector to procure local products.
Many of these challenges, if not all, are faced by farmers in developing countries, and for a particular group, that is those who sell their produce – bananas, coffee, sugar, cocoa, etc. – in our markets Fairtrade has offered long term, sustainable solutions.
The Conference will:
1. Examine existing good practice, in Cumbria and beyond, including Fairtrade, to determine ways in which more local farmers and more local food and wool processors can work together for a fairer deal and a more sustainable future, mindful of the challenges which farming faces post 2013.
2. Consider the parallels, similarities and differences between the situation of small farmers in developing countries and farmers in Cumbria.
3. Generate ideas and make recommendations for action through workshops on seven topics:
i. Increasing the awareness and commitment of consumers to buy local produce
ii. Exploring ways in which farmers can work more effectively together
iii. Examining the feasibility of a ‘Cumbrian Fare’ brand
iv. Adding value to local wool
v. Improving the distribution of local produce
vi. Dedicated supply chains for milk and the possibility of a ‘Fair Milk’ Mark
vii. How public procurement could do more for both local and Fairtrade producers.
Cumbria Local and Fair is for Cumbrian farmers, Cumbrian food and wool processors, distributors and retailers, sustainability and public procurement officers, elected members of Cumbrian councils, MPs and MEPs, Fairtrade campaigners, and anyone with interests in local farming, local food and wool processing, local consumption, sustainability and Fairtrade.
For more information: http://www.cumbriafairtrade.org.uk/
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