fair trade week 27 oktober 2011
12 december 2011
Leverende organisatie | Aangeleverd op 12-12-2011
Good to see so many people here at the Erasmus University to join us in a debate concerning the important issues of sustainability and fairtrade. Today we start the Fairtrade Week. This week fairtrade products will be in the picture at many places, from supermarkets to canteens, from schools and universities to restarants. And what an excellent start, to start this week and evening with the Max Havelaar lecture.
Food, what are we without food? How many times do we think actively about our food? Do we think about shortages elsewhere in the world or about too much food in our part? It starts with ourselves, it starts with our daily routines. I don’t know about your pattern, but mine is quit capricious. If I have to score myself: sometimes an 8, sometimes a 2. How about you?
Wonderful to notice the progress. Thanks to 1,5 billion farmers in developing countries we do get Fairtrade products in our supermarkets and baskets. Thanks to the investments in fairtrade about 6 million people are reached in getting a better future.
No wonder the municipality of Rotterdam chooses fairtrade. We even compete to get the title of Fairtrade Municipality. Thanks to a very active working group of civil servant volunteers we will reach this goal. They aim at getting there at the end of this year. And seeing their enthousiasm, commitment and perseverance I’m convinced we will get there.
But we need all the help we can get. We have to join forces. It is necessary that as much as possible companies and organisations in Rotterdam buy and sell Fairtrade products. And we need volunteers. The working group already succeeded in getting a lot of volunteers involved for the countings and controls of shops, restaurants and companies that claim to be Fairtrade.
It is a great pleasure and honoour to officially open this week of Fairtrade and evening of the Max Havelaar lecture with my favourite product: Chocolate, an excellent bite made by Lisette Kreischer. The necessary ingredients are delivered by farmers from Ghana and Paraguay, thanks to stichting Max Havelaar. At the sign of action we all eat this bite at the same moment to officially open the Fairtrade Week! Lots of success in joint action!
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