TransFair USA – one of 20 members of Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) – has heralded the best ever Fairtrade month in the US, after what the association described as “a rousing success with unprecedented participation both online and offline from individuals, partners and supporters”.
During the October campaign, TransFair highlighted a new Fairtrade-certified product each day via its website, Facebook and Twitter, with thousands of visitors leaving comments, reposting messages, hosting events and inviting their family and friends to participate.
“More than 33,000 people visited the Fairtrade Month website throughout October and friends of Fairtrade posted over 2,200 links on Twitter with the key words ‘Fair Trade’,” the association said in a news release.
“We very nearly reached our Fairtrade Month goal for new supporters with 30,708 fans on Facebook and 3,148 followers on Twitter.”
This year, TransFair set new records for the number of Fair trade Month events hosted with over 250 grassroots events, topping the previous record of 170 events in 2008.
In the fresh produce category, Sam’s Club hosted a Fairtrade banana sampling and promoted Fairtrade Month on their website and Facebook page.
Even in the midst of the economic downturn, TransFair said Fairtrade goods have demonstrated impressive growth rates both in the US and worldwide.
“In spite of the challenging economic situation over the last year, a new report by the data collection and analytics group SPINS shows that consumers continue to remain committed to Fairtrade products, confirming their support for ethical trade practices and responsible supply chains with their purchases,” the organization revealed.
While the SPINS data collection focuses largely on natural product supermarkets, cooperatives and independent and local mid-sized grocery chains, the group’s analysis is highly regarded within the industry and, according to TransFair, provides some very important insight into what ‘green’ consumers are purchasing.
For the 52-week period ended 8 August 2009, sales of Fairtrade products in SPINS retail channels were shown to be growing at a rate of 31 per cent – markedly above average growth rates in either channel for the 52-week period.
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