Rt Hon Winston Peters
Minister of Foreign Affairs

28 April 2007

New Zealand supports fair trade

Buying fair trade products helps farmers and producers in the developing world receive a fair income for their work, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said at the start of Fair Trade Fortnight.

Fair Trade Fortnight, which the government supports through its international development agency, NZAID, is a nationwide event encouraging shoppers to buy fair trade products.

It is organised by Oxfam NZ, Trade Aid and the Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand, and runs from today until 13 May.

“Fair trade is about giving poor people a hand-up rather than a hand-out," Mr Peters said.

“Helping producers in developing countries get a fair income for their work also reflects NZAID's approach to trade and development. It’s a sustainable way to improve livelihoods and the impact can be far reaching.

"Raising consumer awareness of the availability of fair trade products is proving successful in many countries, with promotional events in places such as the UK now well-established and self-supporting.

"The strong growth of Fair Trade in New Zealand over the last two years suggests a similar success can be achieved here."

Mr Peters said Fair Trade products were easily identified by their Fair Trade logo, and were Trade Aid shops and several other outlets throughout New Zealand.

ENDS

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