"We have researched the market, identified major distributors and contacted them. We would like to encourage them to bring organic AND Fairtrade bananas into the market. Organic bananas are already in supermarkets and of course, they are more expensive than their non-organic counterparts. At the moment, the first concern of consumers is whether or not the products are healthy and they only think about the conditions of the producers as an afterthought. We believe that in order to succeed, Fairtrade bananas must also be organic." said Zbigniew Szalbot, Member of the Management board from Fairtrade Polska.
Fairtrade Polska is working together with both domestic and international businesses to make Fairtrade products easily available throughout the country. According to Szalbot, this would not have been possible without working as an official Fairtrade Marketing Organisation.
"We continue to educate Polish consumers, which we started even before we officially became Fairtrade Polska. Some estimates suggest that consumer recognition of the Fairtrade mark in Poland is at a point the UK was back in 2001. Education is vital because many Poles do not treat international development aid as a priority and often think that it should be someone else's responsibility. I think that it partly stems from years of living under communism, along with the lack of a colonial past, we need to help them learn more about global challenges and how Fairtrade is doing its best to make an impact."
The organisation is also actively busy with advocacy work, especially in regards to public procurements. A new law was recently passed which makes it possible for local authorities to include Fairtrade (and other certified products) to their offerings, which had not been possible previously. The public procurement market in Poland is worth 16% of all GDP (at local and national levels).
"We are excited to have joined Fairtrade and are looking forward to contributing towards a more sustainable and just world." concluded Szalbot.
For more information:
Zbigniew Szalbot
Fairtrade Polska
Email: zbigniew.szalbot@fairtrade.org.pl
fairtrade.org.pl