Fairtrade coffee sales grow in UK

Sales of Fairtrade branded coffee have bucked the trend for the grocery industry in the UK, rising by 8 per cent in 2016. Alliances with retailing giants such as Starbucks, which uses Fairtrade coffee for its Seattle Best Coffee brand targeted at offices and businesses and Lidl supermarkets have driven growth. Coffee and bananas were the strongest categories for Fairtrade-branded products, while sales of tea and cocoa have dipped. Fairtrade says the strong performance of coffee and bananas will contribute almost US$37 million in Fairtrade premiums – money paid over the price of the goods themselves – to producers in developing countries. “Despite all the challenges and turbulence of 2016 which has seen the grocery market contract and the pound plummet shoppers are still supporting Fairtrade to deliver a better deal for the farmers who grow some of our favourite ingredients,” said CEO of the Fairtrade Foundation Michael Gidney. “Growth in some of our most iconic products such as bananas and coffee have continued, whilst new additions show the continued desire to make trade fair.”