Making the right choice (From Stroud News and Journal)

Making the right choice

In these days of the 'ethical consumer' we are encouraged to think before we buy and choose our purchases carefully. But the competing choices can leave us in a bit of a muddle as we try to decide which is the best of a good bunch. SAM BOND compared organic, FairTrade and local produce

LOCAL PRODUCE

SINCE setting up the Stroud Farmers' Market Clare Gerbrands has become something of an expert on local produce.

But even she confessed to a degree of confusion when it comes to doing the right thing and choosing the goods that have the least impact on the environment and people's welfare.

"It is very confusing," she said.

"And I would never say that one is better than any of the others, you've got to look at both the environmental and human impact.

"I would say that overall they are on a par because they each have their own advantages.

"I'm very much in favour of FairTrade because of lot of the world's growers are living below the poverty line and can't even support their own children.

"It is really important because it means they will get a reasonable standard of living.

"But buying directly from the producers here in Stroud is also great because you get to find out about the food and where it has come from."

She said shoppers did not always have to make the tough decision, as it was possible to get produce that was both local and organic and the Farmers' market has a FairTrade stall once a month too.

"If everyone bought local food the environmental savings would be phenomenal, the equivalent of billions of pounds," she said.

"There should be a tax on aviation fuel so people would be aware of the real cost of their food.

"It's great to have a choice as a consumer but there really is no need to air-freight in produce that is available here, which happens all the time."

Clare recommended people try eating with the seasons, as it strengthens our connection with the land and the world around us, not to mention means eating the freshest, tastiest foods.

"It's a very different way of eating and our whole way of shopping has completely changed since we started running farmers' markets," she said.

"At the moment we're thinking 'oh no, it's still winter' but when the salads and soft fruits come in it's so amazing to get those lovely flavours and freshness back in your life.

"In my experience the strawberries that have been flown in don't taste anything like the strawberries you can buy locally in May.

"Some things are definitely worth waiting for."

Buying local produce also had the knock on effect of boosting the local economy, she said, which helped everyone.

"There are always going to be different considerations," said Clare.

"If you did your shopping buying a bit of local, a bit of FairTrade and a bit of organic it would be a better world."

ORGANIC

NO chemicals, no messing around and growing just as nature intended.

There is something idyllic, almost romantic, about organic farming but how does the staple of the Good Life compare with the other contenders?

Sue Flook, a spokesman for the Soil Association, flew the flag for natural foods.

"The choice is a problem for people but since we exist to promote and certify organic produce, we're going to say buy UK organic wherever possible," she said.

Sue argued there was not a huge conflict between organic and FairTrade produce as the bulk of FairTrade goods were not available from domestic markets in any case.

"The FairTrade mark was set up to support farmers in developing countries and in general they supply produce that we couldn't grow here," she said.

But she pointed out you could kill two birds with one stone by buying organic FairTrade or organic local produce.

"We're trying to get consumers and supermarkets to favour organic food that hasn't been imported," she said.

"Imports are bad in terms of pollution and some food is air-freighted which is disastrous for the environment.

"Also the more you transport food the more it tends to be packaged, which is also an unnecessary waste of resources that damages the planet.

"There are some foods that you do have to import such as bananas and coffee but there are some products that are being verily heavily imported that don't need to be.

"Organic apples are being imported when they are in season in this country and that's absolutely unacceptable.

"Pork is another example - there is plenty of quality pork bred in this country but it is being shipped in from Europe."

She said the success of organic farmers showed chemical pesticides and fertilisers were not necessary and there was a growing trend among consumers to buy food they knew was safe.

"A lot of people are now getting their organic produce direct from the farmers," she said.

"Although supermarket sales of organic produce have dropped by one per cent over the last year there has been a 16 per cent rise in purchases from box schemes, farm shops and farmers markets."

"People tend to decide for themselves what's important to them," she said.

"I don't think it's fair for people to be faced with this dilemma, all of them are worthwhile."

FAIRTRADE

ANY caring soul concerned about working conditions and appalling pay in the developing world can now pick up a wide variety of products that guarantee a fair deal for growers.

FairTrade is where ethical shopping meets charity and the FairTrade Foundation's Abi Murray stepped up to fight its corner.

"We licence the FairTrade mark on products such as coffee, chocolate, tea and sugar," she said.

"If consumers see the mark they know it is a guarantee that the farmers and workers at the beginning of the chain in developing countries have received a price for their product that covers the cost of production and they will get a payment on top of that.

"The producers we work with have FairTrade committees and they vote on what to spend it on.

"It might be a new school, better sanitation for water supplies or a casing station to make coffee packing easier - whatever they want, it's the workers who decide what they need, not us."

Farmers lucky enough to have FairTrade links live without the shadow of sometimes-vicious mercurial global markets hanging over them.

"The world market is constantly going up and down but the FairTrade price is stable so it allows farmers to plan ahead because they know what they are going to get," said Abi.

"Because the price fluctuates so much all the time it is impossible for farmers to predict what their crop will be worth by the time it comes to harvesting it.

"In the case of coffee, for example, prices were recently at a 30-year low and in many cases it wasn't worth farmers' while to even harvest it.

"That means many farm workers have to move out of their home villages and into the cities to find work."

"Most FairTrade products aren't competing with local produce and are things you cannot grow in the European climate," she said.

"Where they do compete, like with some of the fresh fruits, they are filling in the gaps in the European market.

"We have apples and oranges from South Africa, for example, but they are shipped over at Christmas time when they are out of season here."

While only some FairTrade produce is also organic, all must meet strict standards and there are limits to the chemicals that can be used on FairTrade crops.

"We set the standards for each product so in terms of the chemicals used FairTrade products are generally better than non-FairTrade.

"Some are organically certified as well and the farmers get an extra payment for that too."

Like her fellow ethical advocates, Abi was unwilling to be pinned down to claiming her produce trumped the other two.

"It's not necessarily better, it's something out there alongside local produce and organic," she said.

"It offers more choice.

"At the moment it can be very difficult to know what conditions farmers are working under and what they receive for their work.

"FairTrade guarantees they are getting a fair deal."