A premier event on South Africa’s 2012 coffee calendar, Fairtrade Coffee Week is back in full swing to celebrate South Africa’s coffee culture with an increased range of Fairtrade labelled coffees. The campaign kicks off on Monday 14 May 2012 and promises to take South Africans on a journey into the vibrancy of the Fairtrade coffee industry – new flavours, new stories and lots of caffeine!
This year’s Fairtrade Coffee Week comes with exciting surprises for South African coffee aficionados, the biggest of which is Woolworths commitment to Fairtrade. As part of its Good Business Journey, all coffee-based beverages sold in the over 70 Woolworths coffee shops around the country will be Fairtrade certified. This move will not only double the amount of Fairtrade coffee available to South Africans, but it will also generate a yearly Fairtrade Premium of over ZAR 180,000 for small-scale coffee farmers in East Africa, where the Fairtrade coffee is sourced. The Fairtrade Premium is additional funds paid for social, economic and environmental projects in farming communities.
“Fairtrade Coffee Week has a special meaning for Fairtrade both locally and internationally, as it celebrates our flagship product and over 532,000 small-scale farmers involved in Fairtrade coffee production in the world.”, says FLSA’s Executive Director Boudewijn Goossens, “45,220 Kg, or approximetely 3 and half million cups of Fairtrade coffee, was drunk in SA in 2011. Resultantly, over R135 000 in the form of Fairtrade Premiums was paid over to small-scale coffee farmers for reinvestment into their communities. On behalf of those producers and of South African consumers, I congratulate Woolworths and all the other South African Fairtrade coffee brands for increasing the impact of Fairtrade in the East African coffee community and for contributing to a more equal and sustainable Africa.”
Justin Smith, manager of Woolworths Good Business Journey explains: “Our goal was to do more than provide a market for the small-scale farmers who grow our café coffee. We wanted to empower this economically marginalised community and are delighted to be able to partner with Fairtrade, a world leading not-for-profit organisation that promotes the development of farmers through trade supported by international social and environmental standards”.
Fairtrade Coffee Week Event Calendar
- In addition to Woolworths, Fairtrade Coffee Week will also collaborate with our four other Fairtrade coffee partners: Bean There, Ciro, Fabino, and Miko Coffee.
- Our pre-campaign launch, in conjunction with SACoffeeClub, will be hosted on Saturday the 12th of May in Cape Town at the Foodcorp Innovation Centre. Chocolate and coffee lovers are invited to come and enjoy a cooking demonstration and a morning filled with their two favorite dark, guilty pleasures. The event is absolutely free of charge but places are limited so please book in advance – RSVP info@sacoffeeclub.co.za
- Fairtrade Coffee Week celebrations will officially be kicked off on Tuesday the 15th of May with a CIRO promotion at University of Johannesburg. On the same day, media reps are invited to learn more about Fairtrade coffee at CIRO roastery in Johannesburg. The ‘What’s Your Flava’ event will kick off at 16h30 – RSVP LaniS@ciro.co.za
- Tune into SABC 3’s 3 Talk with Noeleen to catch a glimpse of Loyiso Bala, SAMA award-winning musician and Fairtrade’s first South African Brand Ambassador as he chats about the ambassadorship.
- Woolworths will also talk about their commitment to Fairtrade coffee in their W Cafes.
- Be on the lookout for the Fairtrade Coffee Week posters in over 250 coffee shops participating in Fairtrade Coffee Week nationwide
- Round up your friends and take advantage of Bean There’s ‘buy two coffees get one FREE’ promotion during Fairtrade Coffee Week! Available at their Cape Town and Johannesburg coffee shops. Don’t forget to take pictures and tag us on Facebook.
Keep up to date about news, events and interviews happening during Fairtrade Coffee Week, and enter our competition to win a PURO 4 U Coffee machine and coffee hamper to the value of R4000. Simply like our Facebook Page, follow us on Twitter or visit our website at www.FairtradeSA.org.za for more details.
