By switching to more sustainable products you can have a significant impact on the morale of your employees and your environmental and social footprint.
Take chocolate for example, or more specifically it’s main ingredient, cocoa beans.
70% of the world’s cocoa supply comes from west Africa, the African cocoa market has a long history of corruption, and slavery, especially child slavery.
In 2016 the International Labour Organisation estimated that there were 1.8 million child slaves involved in cocoa production. Fair Trading standards help to prevent this from happening by only accepting cocoa from verified and reputable suppliers.
Another similar product is coffee. Britain loves coffee, we drink an impressive 95 million cups of coffee a day. But much like chocolate, coffee is an industry with a long history of exploitation, slavery and child labour. Fair trading standards were originally invented to protect coffee growers from fluctuating prices and ensure that coffee growers receive a fair wage for their work. They continue this work today by working extensively to prevent child labour and exploitative working conditions in the developing world.
There are over 4500 different Fairtrade products licensed for sale in the UK, so you have plenty of options to choose from. There are even Fairtrade suppliers for pod based coffee machines.
Fairtrade and other sustainable products might cost slightly more than typical products but the fair trading standards encourage biodiversity, carbon reduction, habitat protection and support communities in the developing world. Look for the products with the Fairtrade or Rainforest Alliance when planning events or looking for office break supplies.