Harper celebrates Fairtrade Fortnight

Posted 10 March 2011

Mulled wine, coffee mornings and a guest speaker have been just some of the highlights of Fairtrade Fortnight at Harper Adams.

The event is part of a national campaign to champion Fairtrade, with businesses and individuals across the country hosting special events to help support farmers and workers in developing countries.

Catering staff at the University College in Shropshire, arranged a series of events for students to enjoy, starting with the sale of Fairtrade mulled wine during sports fixtures.

This was followed by guest speaker Meriel Chippindale talking to students at last week’s Harper Forum in the West Midlands Regional Food Academy on campus.

A coffee morning took place last Saturday in the new Graze Café, followed by free Fairtrade tea and coffee in the Kaldi Café this morning and a cake sale.

Student Union President, Peter Dodd, spent his lunchtime being a ‘trolley dolly’ and served coffee and cakes to students in the new student services building – the Faccenda Centre.

The festivities draw to a close tomorrow, with a Fairtrade cake sale. Placement student, Mitchell Hall, helped to organise the fortnight.

He said: “Harper Adams has recently renewed its Fairtrade status, so is always looking for ways to encourage the students to be involved.

“Many of the goods we already sell are Fairtrade, including the coffee, tea, chocolate and bananas. This event takes it to the next level and we are proud to be supporting the campaign.”

Fairtrade is a strategy for poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Its purpose is to create opportunities for producers and workers who have been economically disadvantaged or marginalized by the conventional trading system.

For more information about Meriel Chippindale’s talk, visit http://www.harper-adams.ac.uk/press/article.cfm?ID=201284