Fair Trade News

January 30, 2007 | Associated Press


Send love and save the world

by Beth J. Harpaz

I love you so much, I saved the world.

What more could your beloved ask for than that? To showcase undying devotion alongside your altruism, here are some Valentine's Day gifts with good deeds attached: organic flowers, fair-trade chocolate, diamonds that help remove land mines, and a perfume whose maker frets about global warming.

Flowers

Sending flowers might improve your relationship. But can it improve the world?

Yes, according to Amy Stewart, author of "Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers" (Algonquin Books, February). Through the Organic Bouquet organization, you can order "Charitable Bouquets" for $50-$75 plus shipping; proceeds go to charity.

"You can choose red roses for the American Red Cross, tulips for the Nature Conservancy, or calla lilies that support the Jane Goodall Institute, to name a few," Stewart said.

Some bouquets are 100 percent organic; others are certified by VeriFlora, a new eco-label that guarantees they were grown under decent conditions for workers and environmentally sound farming practices. Florists can locate suppliers through VeriFlora's Web site.

"Many in the floral industry share my belief that 2007 is going to be the year of the "green revolution' in cut flowers," she said.

Chocolate

You've probably seen fair-trade coffee in bags bearing pretty designs and an interesting story about the place where it was grown.

Now get ready for fair-trade chocolate.

"In the next year, we're going to see an increase in the demand for fair-trade chocolate," predicted Nicole Chettero of Trans Fair USA, which certifies fair-trade products. "Fair-trade chocolate grew almost 85 percent in 2005 alone." And its reputation is approaching the "high-quality, gourmet" buzz of fair-trade coffee, she said.

Fair-trade chocolate means "not only did it come from a small, democratically elected collective of cacao producers, but they were paid above-market prices, and no child labor was used," Chettero said. While fair trade does not equal organic, she said it does connote "sustainable farming, strict environmental standards and none of the worst pesticides."

Theo Chocolate, a Seattle maker of premium chocolates, is the only "bean-to-bar" fair-trade chocolatier in the U.S., meaning that they roast the beans here in addition to creating confections, Chettero said.

"We have a smoking hot Valentine's Day Aphrodisiac collection," said Pamela Hinckley, Theo's West Coast sales manager. The six-piece box of organic ganache, $13.99 plus shipping and handling, can be ordered from Theo at (206) 632-5100. (The chocolate only has a three-week shelf life, so it won't be shipped until Feb. 1.) The box is wrapped in wild pink, red, and brown paper.

Diamonds

What do diamond mines have to do with minefields?

Igloo Diamonds make the connection by donating to Adopt-a-Minefield to have mines removed in Mozambique. Diamond prices range from $900-$35,000; Igloo gives a percentage of the markup on each gem toward clearing minefields. For a $5,000 diamond sold, the company would give about $240 to Adopt-a-Minefield, and that amount of money pays to have over 1,500 square feet cleared of mines, according to Gad Zak, president of Igloo Diamonds. The bigger the diamond sold, the bigger the minefield cleared.

The diamonds come from mines in Canada's Northwest Territories, about 120 miles from the Arctic Circle. They are available loose, set in rings or in solitaire pendants, and come with a certificate from Adopt-a-Minefield and Igloo attesting to the minefield clearance.