Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Chelmsford Fairtrade Town Campaign held on 17 November 2009 at Christ Church, New London Road.

 

PRESENT: Rachel Hewings (Chairperson) and seventeen others.

 
APOLOGIES: Yvonne Spence, Emily Kent.

 

The Chairperson welcomed everyone and formally opened the meeting.

 

MINUTES OF THE 2008 AGM: these were accepted as a true record. There were no matters arising.

ANNUAL REPORT 2008 – 2009: after the Chair had made reference to the contribution Bill Grieve had
made to developing Fairtrade in Chelmsford before his death in 2009, Malcolm Wallace outlined a 
number of key activities that the Committee had undertaken. These included our positive relationship with 
the Borough Council and its staff, working with the Fairtrade Foundation and our participation in its 
activities, a number of public events, and the efforts of many local groups during Fairtrade Fortnight. 
Malcolm referred to the way in which we had communicated our message through the media and our 
websites. He then explained that although we had been in the process of developing a certificate for 
retailers selling Fairtrade products, the Foundation had developed its own certificate which we adopted. 
These had been laminated and passed to retailers and companies for display on their premises. 
However, although some progress has been made to develop Essex as a Fairtrade County, this has 
stalled and consideration would have to be given to see how the project could be progressed. David 
Parker thanked Malcolm for his report and work undertaken during the year.

FINANCIAL REPORT: David Parker, as Treasurer, then presented the audited Financial Report which 
showed that we had a Balance of £1068.40 with £100 in a Shared Interest Account. During the year we 
had spent £78.97 on two display tables, £250 on a banner stand arising from a donation by Chelmsford 
Star Co-operative Society, and £26.39 on leaflet display holders. In view of our public work the 
Committee had deemed it essential to purchase public liability insurance for £78.75, with the Fairtrade 
Foundation paying an equivalent amount for the policy. After Gill Parker explained the financial work 
done by the Shared Interest Account it was agreed to support the Committee’s proposal to increase 
this by £200. David, and the auditor, John Tyler, were thanked for their work.

ELECTION OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE: Rachel Hewings explained that although she had enjoyed 
her year as Chair she did not wish to be re-elected but was willing to continue to serve on the Committee. 
Rachel was thanked for her contribution.

Unfortunately, no-one was elected to chair our meetings and it was agreed that this would be done by 
a committee member as required. The following were then proposed and elected to the Committee: 
Tony Bender, Ray Le Couteur, Rachel Hewings, Emily Kent, David Parker, Gill Parker, Stephen Robinson, 
Malcolm Wallace, Michael Whalley.

FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT: a discussion then took place on Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 with its theme 
of “The Big Swap”. It was noted that information is on the Foundation’s website and it is hoped that 
one million and one people will swap their usual products to Fairtrade. Each swap will be proof that 
the UK wants developing world producers to get a better deal. Registration for the event can be made 
on the website. Members were asked to encourage as many community groups and supporters to get 
involved in the campaign as possible.

 A general discussion took place on a variety of Fairtrade issues including the way in which small 
corner shops could increase their product range, future High Street events and the benefits of additional 
volunteers to assist in our activities. Two events were promoted by Fairtrade supporters; one by Trinity 
Methodist Church on 12 December, the other on Climate Change which is organised by Oxfam and 
Chelmsford TUC on 4 December at Christ Church.

 After thanks were recorded to Gill and David Parker for providing the refreshments, the meeting ended 
at 8.50pm. 

 Before the formal business commenced Henry Mathews, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Supply Chain 
Management and Agriculture at Writtle College, gave a  presentation on issues facing the people of 
Tajikstan. Henry commenced his talk by outlining the position of Tajikstan, politically and strategically, 
following the demise of the Soviet Union. He then explained that most of its territory was mountainous 
and lacked natural resources such as oil, with electricity being limited to a few hours a day. The economy 
was greatly affected by natural catastrophes such as earthquakes and landslides and the nation suffered 
from economic migration. The people had limited democracy and its children were obliged to work at a 
very early age, particularly in cotton production. Agriculture was primitive, corruption endemic, and there 
was little knowledge of marketing products. Henry then outlined a number of projects undertaken during 
his time in Tajikstan and said that despite all the hardships faced by its people, he thought there was 
some prospect of progress particularly if there were political and democratic change. He emphasised 
the benefits of sustainable development, co-operation and marketing and eco-tourism. After answering 
a number of questions Henry was thanked for his excellent address. 


                                 CHELMSFORD FAIRTRADE TOWN CAMPAIGN
                                                                                        ANNUAL REPORT 2008 - 2009

 THE STANDING COMMITTEE 

The Standing Committee elected at the AGM in November 2008 was Rachel Hewings (Chairperson), David Parker (Treasurer), Tony Bender, Ray Le Couteur, Malcolm Wallace, Michael Whalley, Gill Parker and Stephen Robinson. 

Emily Kent joined the Committee in January. 

 

It is with great sadness that we have to record that our former Treasurer, Bill Grieve, died in 2009. Bill attended the first                       

meeting of the Fairtrade Group in May 2003 and was elected to the Steering Committee as our Treasurer until 2008. Bill was 

a great supporter of Fairtrade and fulfilled his position as Treasurer with great efficiency. We owe him a debt of gratitude.                

 

Since the 2008 AGM the Standing Committee has met on six occasions. The total membership of Chelmsford Fairtrade Town Campaign is 18, an increase of 1 since last year. The Committee is currently examining this with a view to increasing our number particularly within those firms that support or sell Fairtrade products.

 

Rachel Hewings, our Chair, will not be standing for the position for 2009 to 2010 but she is willing to remain on the Standing Committee. We would like to thank Rachel for the way in which she has conducted our affairs.

 

As we are an established group we no longer have to renew our Fairtrade Town status on an annual basis. However, this will have to be submitted by May 2010 and work is under way to ensure that we meet the deadline. Copies of our minutes and applications have been placed in the Essex Record Office.

 

Chelmsford Borough Council continues to support our work and we would like to thank Councillor Tony Sach for his assistance during the year. As Councillor Sach is now the current Mayor of Chelmsford his relationship with the Standing Committee has been passed to Councillor Nicolette Chambers. During the year we have worked with the Town Centre Management Team which has enabled us to promote and sell Fairtrade products and offer information about Fairtrade in the High Street. We are pleased to tell you that the Council agreed to promote the Fairtrade logo in its “Life” newspaper and will update Fairtrade information on its website as and when required. Fairtrade products are used in all the Civic Centre meeting rooms and in all its catering outlets, but we considered that the range could be increased. We wrote to Chelmsford Borough Council to see if further progress could be made to increase the goods on offer particularly at Riverside Leisure Centre; this is now being reviewed.

 

With the rapid increase in the range of Fairtrade products now available we asked our supporters, via e-mail, to tell us if they were aware of any changes in the product range in their local shops. We wrote to Chelmsford City Football Club and asked them to use Fairtrade products and they are now doing so. We also wrote to the Fairtrade Foundation to encourage it to write to the appropriate government department to ensure that fruit supplied to children up to their reception year is Fairtrade. This is currently being examined.

  

Working in conjunction with the Fairtrade Foundation we have developed a Chelmsford Fairtrade Certificate for display in outlets selling Fairtrade products. This is being further developed for churches and community groups. We are pleased to tell you that after we gave a talk to business students at Chelmsford College, the College is working towards Fairtrade status.

 

At our April meeting Katy Wheeler gave us an update on her thesis of a Fairtrade Town and said that it was not just about consumption. Katy explained that supporters came to Fairtrade via several routes. This developed into a very interesting and valuable discussion.   

 

In February our Secretary attended the third International Fairtrade Conference at Lyon. One outcome of the conference was a new international website. This can be seen at http://www.fairtradetowns.org/

 

We were also represented at a conference, organised by the Fairtrade Foundation, on the global food crisis. This was chaired by George Alagiah and the speakers explored the effects of the crisis on small-scale producers. The delegates discussed whether current responses to the food crisis are adequate and examined the role of Fairtrade in supporting solutions. We attended the Fairtrade Foundation’s Action Day in London where there were a number of presentations and workshops.

 

The Committee would like to thank all individuals, organisations, workplaces, faith communities, political parties and companies who, through their activities, promote Fairtrade. We would also like to thank Christ Church for providing us with the meeting room for our AGM.

 

OUR PUBLIC ACTIVITIES

As referred to above, the Committee has held a number of Fairtrade promotional stalls during the year. These were as follows:

Black History Month in the High Street working in conjunction with Chelmsford TUC. This was repeated this year.

High Street sale in November 2008 and in May 2009 to mark International Fairtrade Day.

World Environment Day at The Meadows.

Two events run in conjunction with the International Finance Data Services in Parkway and at Chelmsford Business Centre.

Following an invitation from the Chamber of Commerce we had a presentation table at Hylands House. During her talk the Minister for the Department for International Development promoted our Fairtrade Directory and drew attention to our work.

Chelmsford TUC’s May Rally and its “Evening of Solidarity with Palestinian People”. All of these were of benefit although it would have been a little easier if we had had more volunteers to share the workload.

 

FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT

During Fairtrade Fortnight we held an exhibition in the Public Area of Chelmsford Library. We had a promotional and display table in the High Street with Starbucks being particularly supportive.

 

It is pleasing to record that at least 25 events were held in Chelmsford and we thanked all our supporters for their efforts. Writtle College and Anglia Ruskin University participated in the Banana Eating World Record attempt (which achieved its objective) and Chelmsford Star’s Fairtrade evening, at which our Chair spoke, has always been a superb event. Christ Church held a very enjoyable “Clothes Show”. One point that was noted during Fairtrade Fortnight was that some groups using Fairtrade do not promote this in their literature or posters. We hope that this will be rectified.

 

COMMUNICATIONS, THE MEDIA AND PUBLICITY

In January the Committee took a major step forward when Emily Kent was appointed as our press officer.

 

Copies of our minutes have been sent to Councillors Sach and Chambers. A report of every meeting has been sent to the media and Essex Chronicle’s Community News where it has always been published. A copy has been placed on our website and the minutes are on the Forum website. Information sent to us on events can be seen on our website in “Fairtrade supporters’ events”. Our Standing Orders, Constitution, the Fairtrade Town Application, can also be seen on the Fairtrade Town website.

 

We have regularly updated our Chelmsford Fairtrade website, map of Chelmsford Fairtrade outlets and our Forum website. We have also used the Fairtrade Foundation’s website to promote our activities. Several photo shots have been used by local companies and Anglia Ruskin University.

 

FINANCIAL REPORT

A detailed Financial Statement will be provided by the Treasurer at the AGM.

 

During the year we purchased a display board with money donated by Chelmsford Star Co-operative Society. We also bought two display tables.

 

Following a number of requests for Public Liability Insurance we decided to take this on at £75 pa; the Fairtrade Foundation has paid a further £75 for this to be realised.

 

We invested £100 into a Shared Interest Account. Shared Interest is a co-operative lending society that aims to reduce poverty in the world by providing fair and just financial services. It works with fair trade businesses all over the world, both producers and buyers, providing credit to help them trade and develop.

 

FAIRTRADE IN ESSEX

For some time we have been encouraging other Fairtrade groups in Essex to work together to establish Essex as a Fairtrade County. Two meetings have been held; the first in Chelmsford at Christ Church, the second in Basildon. Not all the groups have been able to attend but progress has been made and we are endeavouring to encourage those towns that do not have a local group to establish one in their area.

 

A Standing Committee has been established and development work is in progress. One of the suggestions was to have an Essex Forum website. This was resolved by Chelmsford redesigning its own site although it has not been utilised by any other groups to date. We wrote to Essex County Council and asked it to promote Fairtrade Fortnight in its magazine. This was agreed and consideration will be given to a further article on Fairtrade in a future issue.

 

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Chelmsford Fairtrade Town Campaign held on 18 November 2008 at Christ Church, New London Road.

 

PRESENT: Malcolm Burgess (Chairman) and twelve others.

 

APOLOGIES: Elizabeth Marshall, Ray Le Couteur, Maurice Austin, Jennie Moir, Andy Moir, Jane Shelley, Barrie Hay, Jane Howarth.

 

The Chairman welcomed everyone and formally opened the meeting.

 

MINUTES OF THE 2007 AGM: these were accepted as a true record. There were no matters arising.

 

ANNUAL REPORT 2007 – 2008: the Annual Report was approved. It was noted that the number of Fairtrade 
outlets in Chelmsford had increased substantially over the year and that Chelmsford had been the prime mover 
in getting an Essex Steering Group established. The range of activities undertaken had been our best to date 
and we had sold a considerable amount of Fairtrade products in the High Street, at Anglia Ruskin University, 
Chelmsford Museum on Anti-Slavery Day, and at the Writtle Fair. We had also taken part in the re:fresh festival. 

 In a discussion on the report the following was raised: the formation of Essex Fairtrade Campaign, progress 
with the Borough Council, the Black Gold DVD that had been sent to Lithuania, and just how committed retailers 
are to Fairtrade beyond the profit motive. The general view was that the Co-operative Movement had, by far, 
the greatest interest in promoting the values and principles of Fairtrade. It was noted that the privately-owned 
café at Hylands House is not selling Fairtrade products.

 FINANCIAL REPORT: the Treasurer then presented the audited Financial Report which showed that we had a 
Balance of £1418.01. It was noted that following the showing of “Black Gold”, we had received a donation of
£350 from Chelmsford Star Co-operative Society; the Society was thanked for its contribution. 

The Treasurer said that we probably had a broader membership than many other groups but we do need 
to increase our number. He also reported that we had purchased two tables which had proved of great benefit 
for promoting and selling Fairtrade. It was agreed that names and addresses of members should be retained 
within the work of the Standing Committee and not published. The Treasurer was thanked for the Report and
it was duly approved. Thanks were also recorded to John Tyler who had audited the accounts.  

 ELECTION OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE: Malcolm Burgess told the meeting that he would not be able to continue as a member of the Chelmsford Group owing to work commitments. Elizabeth Marshall and Martin Humphries had also indicated that they were standing down as they, too, were heavily committed.  Malcolm was warmly thanked for his work as Chairman since the Chelmsford Fairtrade Group had been established, and both Elizabeth and Martin were thanked for the contribution they had made to develop Fairtrade in Chelmsford.

 The following were then proposed, duly seconded and elected to the Committee:

Rachel Hewings (Chairperson).

David Parker (Treasurer).

Malcolm Wallace, Gill Parker, Tony Bender, Ray Le Couteur, Michael Whalley, Stephen Robinson.

 After the formal business had been concluded Gill Parker showed a short DVD on cocoa in Ghana which stimulated a discussion around increasing demand for chocolate and “healthy eating”. 

 A general discussion then took place on developing Fairtrade in Chelmsford and a number of local events were promoted. Katy Wheeler, who has now completed her basic research for her PhD on Fairtrade, said that she will be contacting a number of people in due course to update them on progress.  

 After Gill and David were thanked for the DVD presentation and the refreshments, the Chairman closed the meeting.

 

 

CHELMSFORD FAIRTRADE TOWN CAMPAIGN

ANNUAL REPORT 2007 - 2008

 

THE STANDING COMMITTEE 

The Standing Committee elected at the 2007 AGM was: Malcolm Burgess (Chairman), David Parker (Treasurer), Tony Bender, Ray Le Couteur, Malcolm Wallace, Michael Whalley, Elizabeth Marshall, Gill Parker and Catherine Shiner.  Since the 2007 AGM the Standing Committee has met on six occasions. The total membership of Chelmsford Fairtrade Town Campaign is 51.

 

We are pleased to record that Chelmsford’s Fairtrade Town status was renewed for 2008. As there are now so many applications to be considered by the Fairtrade Foundation and as we are now a well established group, our next application will not have to be submitted until May 2010. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those individuals, organisations, workplaces, faith communities, political parties and companies who, through their activities, helped to make this possible. We would also like to thank Christ Church for providing us with meeting rooms and to Chelmsford Star Co-operative Society for the facilities to copy our last application. The Committee records its thanks to Chelmsford Borough Council, its staff and Councillor Tony Sach for their assistance during the year.

 The number of those using or selling Fairtrade in Chelmsford is as follows: 

Retail outlets: 44 (an increase of 9).

Catering outlets: 31 (an increase of 14).

Employers: 22 (a decrease of 2).

Community groups and workplace groups: 18 (an increase of 1).

Faith groups: 40 (an increase of 5).

Schools/colleges: 18 (no change).

Parish Councils: 4. (No change).

 Since our last Annual Report the following have been added to our list of those using or selling Fairtrade products:

BB’s The Meadows, Bhs Restaurant The Meadows, Marks & Spencer 27 Duke Street, Odeon Cinema, Prestons Garage Writtle, Spar Bishop Hall Lane, Broomfield Hospital and St. Johns (Spice of Life Restaurant and Ritazza Coffee Bar), Greggs The Interchange and 20 Exchange Way, Puccino’s Chelmsford Railway Station, Crêperie at the Meadows, impACT, Debenhams, Monsoon, Café Life, The Rose and Crown, Great Waltham, Starbucks High Chelmer, Tchibo High Chelmer, Sainsbury Café, Select Sandwiches and Catering Ltd, The Co-operative Travel and Chelmsford Star Travel, Millies Cookies, Exclusive Dinners Ltd, The Oasis Church, Thorntons Café.

 

OUR ACTIVITIES

During the year we gave a talk on our work to Mid Essex Friendship Club and to Chelmsford College which is currently seeking to become a Fairtrade College. We provided a Fairtrade promotional table at the Chelmsford TUC May Rally, Moulsham High School Fair and, in conjunction with Chelmsford Star, we had a table at the Writtle Fair. On World Environment Day, we had a Traidcraft stall in the Meadows. We participated in the re:fresh Festival on 12 July with an information table and Traidcraft products in the High Street. Traidcraft also had a table at the University’s Family Day in August and we celebrated “Remember Slavery Day” with a table and Traidcraft products in Chelmsford Museum. A stall was also held in the High Street during Black History Month.

 

We have had meetings with Councillor Sach, Borough Council Officers and Essex County Council in order to promote Fairtrade. Although we still have to make further progress, we are pleased to tell you that our communications with local schools has improved and the majority do some form of Fairtrade activity. It is hoped that some will be applying for Fairtrade School status in the coming months. A number of the Committee have been interviewed by Katherine Wheeler as part of her PhD on Fairtrade. 

 

We were represented at the National Fairtrade Campaign Day in London in September. This is an excellent meeting and we would encourage other local groups to attend as it is very informative and enables a wide exchange of experiences to be discussed.

 

As part of our campaign to make Essex a Fairtrade County we sent letters to a number of local newspapers to encourage the formation of new local Fairtrade groups and to encourage them to hold an event during Fairtrade Fortnight. After our initial attempt to get Essex Fairtrade groups together last year a further meeting is planned for 6 November. A report on this meeting will be given at the AGM.

 

During the year we purchased two tables for selling and promoting Fairtrade items. Following the change of Treasurer our banking arrangements were updated. A Financial report will be given at the AGM.

 

FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT

During Fairtrade Fortnight we had a poster exhibition and display table in the Public Area of Chelmsford Library, a stall at the University and, thanks to Chelmsford Borough Council, we sold a range of Traidcraft products, Fairtrade footballs, T shirts and Ubuntu Cola in the High Street to the value of £354. To promote sales, Fairtrade chocolates and bananas were donated by Chelmsford Star and Sainsbury’s. We would like to record our thanks to both companies. At least 28 events took place during Fairtrade Fortnight and we thank everyone for their efforts to make it a success.

 

We attended a celebration event at Billericay to mark its achievement in being awarded Fairtrade status.

 

Arising from the popularity of “Black Gold” which was sponsored by Chelmsford Star Co-operative Society, it was agreed that we should promote the film to other local  groups. This is displayed on our Forum website but “local” now embraces Lithuania as we received an application to use Black Gold from the Environmental Information Centre in Vilnius.The Centre is staging a project on global education from June 2008 to February 2009 which will assist in improving awareness about Fairtrade in Lithuania.

 

COMMUNICATIONS, THE MEDIA AND PUBLICITY

During the year we have regularly updated our Chelmsford Fairtrade and Forum websites to keep everyone aware of our activities and meetings. We have also added a map of Chelmsford highlighting where Fairtrade products can be purchased. Unfortunately, the number of contributors to the Forum continues to remains at less than we would like. We hope you will look at the site and make a contribution.

 

Copies of our minutes have been sent to Councillor Tony Sach and the Cabinet Support Officer at ECC. A report of every meeting has been sent to the Essex Chronicle’s Community News and placed on the Chelmsford Fairtrade website. Fairtrade supporters’ events, Standing Orders, our Constitution and the Fairtrade Town Application can also be seen on the Fairtrade Town website.

 

We have used the Fairtrade Foundation’s website, local press and radio to promote our activities, and interviews have taken place with local radio. Several photo shots have been held in conjunction with our events although they have not all been used. However, a number of press releases have been used in the regional and local media. We are pleased to note that more supporting organisations have promoted Fairtrade to their members during the year and we are grateful for this additional coverage.

 

Finally, the Committee wishes to place on record its thanks to Malcolm Burgess who will be stepping down as Chairman as a result of heavy work commitments. Malcolm was a founder member of our Campaign. Since we were established he worked extremely hard to obtain our Fairtrade award and to ensure it was maintained. Elizabeth Marshall and Martin Humphries will also be stepping down this year; we thank them both for the significant contribution they have made to promoting Fairtrade in our community.

 

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Chelmsford Fairtrade Town Campaign held on 20 November 2007

at Christ Church, New London Road.

 

PRESENT: Malcolm Burgess (Chairman) and fifteen others.

 

APOLOGIES: Bill Grieve (Treasurer), Michael Whalley, Chris Fegan, Elizabeth Marshall.

 

The Chairman welcomed everyone and formally opened the meeting. He outlined some of the activities that had taken place throughout the year and thanked everyone for the progress made in promoting Fairtrade. He told members that Anglia Ruskin University had been awarded Fairtrade status during 2007 and it had just been announced that Harlow had become a Fairtrade Town. As a result we are on the way to establishing Essex as a Fairtrade County.

 

MINUTES OF THE 2006 AGM: these were accepted as a true record. There were no matters arising.

 

ANNUAL REPORT 2006 – 2007: the Chairman introduced the report and made reference to some of its key features. The use of Fairtrade at Broomfield Hospital was raised during the discussion and it is hoped that this will become a standard feature within the Trust by April 2008. It was noted that although the company SWL has withdrawn its stall in the High Street, more Fairtrade users are entering the market place all the time. Members were asked to keep us advised of any new retailers or organisations that are using Fairtrade. It was pointed out that all our reports and events can be seen on our website and/or on the Forum website.

 

The showing of the film Black Gold was raised and Chelmsford Star was thanked for sponsoring the evening. It was unfortunate that the projectionist had not been aware that there were two films on the system used, and that the wrong one had been shown. Action was immediately taken and everything went well on the second day. To compensate, Chelmsford Star will be offering a free showing to those that had attended the first evening, and this will be at the Cramphorn Theatre during Fairtrade Fortnight

 

The availability of Fairtrade footballs was raised. It was noted that they are currently being sold in Oxfam shops. Although all our 

reports had been published in Essex Chronicle’s Community News and we do get a reasonable coverage during Fairtrade Fortnight, 

some concern was expressed that the media has lost interest in Fairtrade as it had become "mainstream". It was proposed that 

organisers of events might consider innovative ideas to assist in obtaining publicity. The Annual Report was approved.

FINANCIAL REPORT: This showed that we had received £82 in subscriptions and £50 in donations. We had sold stickers, badges 

and directories to the amount of £105.70. Our surplus for the year was £173.43 and our bank / cash balance is £774.20. 

It was noted that our Treasurer, Bill Grieve, is retiring from Office and the Chairman thanked him for his excellent record of service 

to our Campaign since its launch.

A discussion took place on the funding of other Fairtrade groups and although this was a complex issue, it was noted that some 

Councils, regardless of their political colour, had been extremely helpful by sponsoring directories, supplying clerical staff and 

publicising their local Fairtrade group in leaflets and magazines. During the discussion Chelmsford Co-operative Party was thanked 

by the Chairman for paying for our new promotional banner. The Report was approved.

ELECTIONS: 

Chairman: Malcolm Burgess, elected.

Treasurer: David Parker, elected.

The following were elected to the Standing Committee: Malcolm Wallace, Ray Le Couteur, Michael Whalley, Tony Bender, 

Gill Parker, Elizabeth Marshall, Catherine Shiner.

FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT

A number of ideas were raised and it was noted that Fairtrade churches are obliged to carry out some activity during Fairtrade 

Fortnight if they are to retain their status. It was suggested that Chelmsford City might be persuaded to become involved in an event. 

The Standing Committee has already booked space for an exhibition in the public square of Chelmsford Library and discussions 

have taken place with Councillor Sach on other possible opportunities. Organisations were asked to tell us about any events being 

planned so that they can be promoted through the website. 

GUEST SPEAKER:

Katy Wheeler, a student at Colchester University, who is doing a PhD on a Fairtrade Town with Chelmsford as the basis of her study, 

then gave the talk below on the History of Consumer Activism.

After some discussion the Chairman thanked Katy for her excellent talk. Christ Church was thanked for allowing us to use the meeting room and the Chairman closed the meeting at 8.40pm.

 

 

Katy Wheeler, Sociology PhD Student, University of Essex

 

I am carrying out a qualitative study in Chelmsford in order to understand how consumers understand the fairtrade choice in an established fairtrade town.  I am looking for Fairtrade consumers to participate in either a group or individual interview.  Please contact me for more information if you live in Chelmsford and would be interested to take part (Email: kmwhee@essex.ac.uk

Tel: 07968 993164)

 

 Consumer Activism 1791-2007

 

Many people think that fairtrade is a new type of consumer activity and, whilst in many ways we can understand fairtrade as a response to increasingly global and impersonal supply chains, it is important not to forget the historical precedents to this type of action.

 

Our history begins in 1791 in Britain following the Parliament’s rejection of a bill to abolish slavery.  A Quaker-led campaign was launched which urged the people to boycott slave-grown sugar.  At the height of this campaign around 300,000 people were avoiding slave-grown sugar with the hope that individuals could challenge the economic imperative for slavery.  In order to mobilise the consumer to care about the politics of the products they consumed, the public were provided with pamphlets which told of the evils of slavery:

 

“The slave trade is a chain of wretchedness, every link of which is stained with blood! and it involves with equal criminality THE AFRICAN TRADER-THE WEST INDIA SLAVE HOLDER-AND THE BRITISH CONSUMER!” (Allen, p7-8, cited in Sussman, 2000: 40)

 

We can see in the quote above how the consumer was made directly responsible for the slave’s suffering.  There was increasingly a demand for sugar produced by the labour of freemen and the East Indian sugar market grew as a direct result of this:

 

“BENJAMIN TRAVERS, Sugar-Refiner, acquaints the Publick that he has now an assortment of Loaves, Lumps, Powder Sugar, and Syrup, ready for sale… produced by the labour of FREEMEN.” (Hochschild, 2005: 194)

 

We can see a parallel here of fairtrade today with a demand for an alternative product produced under fairer conditions.

 

In America, some 30 years later and on a much smaller scale, there existed the ‘Free produce movement’ which consisted of a small number of abolitionist shopkeepers who provided a ‘free labour’ alternative.  The first free produce store was opened in 1826 in Baltimore and sold a variety of goods – such as soap, clothing, confectionary – all produced by the labour of freemen.  The movement was not altogether successful however, and experienced some difficulty persuading consumers to buy more expensive, often lower quality goods for the ‘sake of the slave’ (see Glickman, 2004; 2006).  Additionally, it should be noted that the line between free and unfree labour was at this time not clearly defined so the movement could be criticised on this basis.  Nevertheless, encouraging consumers to a make a ‘free labour’ choice can still be seen as an important precedent of fairtrade today. 

 

This label was attached to women’s undergarments and came to stand for no child labour or forced overtime and adherence to state factory law (Sklar, 1998).   The Consumers’ Leagues gave the opportunity to women to gain a voice in the public sphere, to perform acts of citizenship before they had the right to vote.  The activities of the Consumers’ Leagues continued until the 1^st World War and then started to fizzle out with the death of several of the key figures and the hardship of the war.  But this early labelling system is a very important pre-cursor to fairtrade today. 

 Perhaps the most important consumer movement of the 19^th and 20^th Centuries was the Co-operative Movement.  Many of you will be familiar with this movement given its longevity and continued support for fairtrade.  The Co-operative movement was a movement born out of necessity that sought to challenge “an increasingly individualistic, market-oriented and competitive mode of production/consumption in Eighteenth-century England” (Gurney, 1996: 12).  The collective association of producers and consumers was devised as a way of keeping the price of staples and basic goods down but more widely as an opportunity to bring about a new social order based on the principles of cooperation.  And with Trade Unions and Co-operative stores working together “the citizens [could be] organised as consumers and the workers organised as producers” as Beatrice Potter famously stated (Potter, 1891: 198).   Peter Gurney (1996) argues that the Co-operative movement was particularly important because it sought to build a cultural revolution that would realise the transformative potential of the movement.  Whilst the vision of creating a new society based on the principles of co-operation, a “new co-operative commonwealth”, was not shared by all members of the co-op – who probably adopted a more flexible approach to their consumption and shopped at the Co-op for some things and department stores for others – the fact that there was an attempt to integrate the economy into the social world of the people was important.  By providing lectures, coffee mornings, reading rooms and festivals the loyalty of co-op shoppers was secured.  We see an attempt to integrate the economy into the social life of the people in the fairtrade movement today with their ‘Fairtrade Towns’ initiative which links local activities with the wider aims of the movement.   

The decline of the Co-operative movement came in the post-2^nd World War era when the allures of mass consumer society and the luxury of a new world of consumer goods emerged.  The Co-operative movement that was born out of necessity had some trouble adjusting to this new market.  Having said this, in recent years we have seen a revival of the Co-op given its stance on ethical trading. 

 

Just briefly before I finish my discussion of early consumer movements, I want to consider the value for money movement.  Whilst this is the movement that developed into one that gave only best buy advice and ignored all of the social aims of movements before it, it has been argued that this movement began as a way of rebuilding Britain after the war through the dialogue between consumers and producers (Hilton, 2003).  Also it was a movement that aimed to promote consumer rights and to protect people from being duped by advertising and sub-standard products.  The consumer rights focus has remained the most dominant form of consumer politics in society to this day. 

     

Interestingly the format of this movement’s publication, Which?, has been used by The Ethical Consumer magazine.  However, the ‘best buy’ advice in this magazine does not refer to price and value but instead to issues of fair trade, animal testing and environmental concerns.  

 

This brief history of early consumer movements has I hope impressed upon all of you how long consumption and politics have gone hand-in-hand and how long consumption has been used as a mechanism for social and political change.  In the time I have remaining I want to introduce you to some of the academic debates around the fairtrade concept rather than discuss what fairtrade is (as I’m sure you already know!). 

         

Whilst fairtrade is interesting to a number of different academic disciplines such as marketing sociology, psychology, economics, and anthropology, I think it is possible to say that there are 2 main focuses of this research.  The main areas of academic interest in fairtrade are

·        The implementation of fairtrade on the ground

·        The understanding of fairtrade by consumers

The latter of these is my main area of interest, but I will give you a brief overview of the former.

 

Research interested in the implementation of fairtrade in the ground for the most part involves studies where authors have assessed the benefits of fairtrade for the farmers and the way that policy is implemented by all the key players.  So it involves interviewing and spending time with fairtrade co-operatives, those people who work for the body that certifies producer and those people responsible for commercially buying fairtrade (see Jaffee, 2007).  For example, there is a growing body of research which has looked at some of the possible problems of mainstreaming fairtrade and whether it is in fact possible to align the aims of the fairtrade movement with the demand for high volumes from supermarket-retailers (see Barrientos and Smith, 2007; Raynolds, 2007).  There has also been work on producer empowerment and in particular how traditional gender roles are being challenged now that women are sometimes earning more than their husbands (Smith and Dolan, 2006; Prieto-Carrón, 2006). 

 

But what I am particularly interested in is how far consumers understand the fairtrade concept.  There is an agreement however that understanding consumer motivations is very difficult given the fact that professed support for the aims of fairtrade does not always end in purchase.  So people do tend to agree, when asked, that supporting Third World producers is important but then they don’t always do so by buying fairtrade.  A study commission by the Co-op on all ethical consumption (not just fairtrade) called this the 30: 3 syndrome:

 

“This is the phenomenon in which a third of consumers profess to care about companies’ policies and records on social responsibility, but ethical products rarely achieve more than a 3% market share” (Cowe and Williams, 2001)

 

So this is a huge problem for research into ethical consumers.  Research that has been carried out on fairtrade consumers to date is very limited with the majority of research looking at ethical consumers in general.  Of this research, it has been found that people who shop ethically do so because they feel the need to maintain a sense of personal integrity (Newholm, 2005).  However little is known about people who don’t buy ethical products.  So there is a gap in existing research that I hope to fill with your help. I intend to carry out a qualitative study of consumers in a fairtrade town and I am looking for fairtrade consumers to participate in either a group or individual interview.  Please contact me for more information if you live in Chelmsford and would be interested to take part (Email: kmwhee@essex.ac.uk Tel: 07968 993164).

 

References

Barrientos, S. & Smith, S. (2007) ‘Mainstreaming fair Trade in global production networks’, in L. Raynolds, D. Murray & J. Wilkinson

(eds.) Fair Trade: The Challenges of transforming globalisation, London: Routledge.

Black, C. (1887) ‘Caveat Emptor’, in Longman’s Magazine, Vol. 10(58): 409-420.

Cowe, R. & Williams, S. (2001) Who are the Ethical Consumers? Manchester: Cooperative Bank.

Friedman, M. (1999) Consumer Boycotts: Effecting Change Through the Marketplace and the Media, London: Routledge.

Glickman, L. (2004) ‘Buy for the sake of the slave: Abolitionism and the origins of American Consumer Activism’, in

American Quarterly, Vol. 56(4): 889-912.

Glickman, L. (2006) ‘Through the Medium of Their Pockets: Sabbatarianism, Free Produce, Non Intercourse and the Significance of

‘Early Modern’ Consumer Activism’, in in A. Chatriot, M. Chessel & M. Hilton (eds.) The Expert Consumer: Associations and Professionals

in Consumer Society, Hants: Ashgate.

Gurney, P. (1996) Co-operative Culture and the Politics of Consumption in England, 1870-1930, Manchester: Manchester University

Press.

Hilton, M. (2003) Consumerism in 20th-Century Britain, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hochschild, A. (2005) Bury the Chains: the British struggle to abolish slavery, London: MacMillan.

Jaffee, D. (2007) Brewing Justice, Berkeley: Uni of California Press.

Newholm, T. (2005) ‘Case Studying Ethical Consumers’ Projects and Strategies’, in R. Harrison et al (eds) The Ethical Consumer,

London: Sage.

Potter, B. (1891/1987) The Co-operative Movement in Great Britain, Hants: Gower Publishing.

Prieto-Carrón, M (2006) ‘Central American Banana Production: Women workers and Chiquita’s Ethical Sourcing from Plantations’, in S. Barrientos & C. Dolan (eds.) Ethical Sourcing in the Global Food System, London: Earthscan. 

Raynolds, L. (2007) ‘Fair Trade Bananas: broadening the movement and the market in the US’, in L. Raynolds, D. Murray & J. Wilkinson

(eds.) Fair Trade: The Challenges of transforming globalisation, London: Routledge.

Sklar, K. K. (1998) ‘The Consumers’ White Label Campaign of the National Consumers League, 1898-1918’, in S. Strasser et al (eds.)

Getting and Spending, Washington: Cambridge University Press.

Smith, S. & Dolan, C. (2006) ‘Ethical Trade: What does it mean for Women Workers in African Horticulture’, in S. Barrientos & C. Dolan (eds.) Ethical Sourcing in the Global Food System, London: Earthscan. 

Sussmann, C. (2000) Consuming Anxieties: Consumer Protest, Gender, and British Slavery, 1713-1833, Stanford: Stanford University

Press.

 

 

 

 Annual Report 2006 - 2007

(As approved at the AGM at Christ Church, New London Road on 20 November 2007)