Across campus, our passionate and dedicated friends in the Human Development Programme (HDP) of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), have commissioned and released an ultra meaty, ultra juicy new report entitled “Valuing Culture in Oceania”

 It is pioneering new ground, the first of its kind in the Pacific – find it here.

Happy reading!

Talei x

For the first time, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), through its Land Resources Division (LRD), was represented at the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) Regional Pacific Rim meeting, which was held from 11-13 May 2010 in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.

This signifies a crucial step in achieving market access for products produced by fair trade organisations in the Pacific Islands, which will enable their entry into the major ethical markets in Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and the European Union.

SPC’s European Union-funded Facilitating Agricultural Commodity Trade (FACT) Fair Trade Facilitation Assistant, Ms Talei Goater, will represent Pacific Island countries and territories during the three-day meeting.

‘This is a breakthrough for the region, as for the first time there is a platform within WFTO in which to talk about the challenges and
opportunities faced by fair trade organisations in the Pacific Islands.’ said Ms Goater.

Ms Goater hopes that attendance at this meeting will provide an opportunity to facilitate the applications by Pacific Island enterprises to join WFTO, a means to enter the fair trade market.

WFTO provides market access via an ‘integrated fair trade supply chain’ where goods are produced, imported and/or distributed via specialised organisations that maintain a fair trade ethos as an integral part of their activities.

She also said that the meeting was an opportunity to showcase FACT export enterprise partners, a unique occasion in which to introduce ethical Pacific Island ventures to specialised fair trade importers and/or distributors across the Pacific Rim.

‘We hope this meeting will also enable potential trading partners overseas to appreciate the range of quality products produced by FACT’s enterprise partners. We also endeavour to convey the work of SPC and the Pasifika Organic and Ethical Trade Community (POETCOM) to progress fair trade production in Pacific Island countries and territories, building credibility for our region,’ she said.

The FACT project is taking an enterprise-focused approach to fair trade, working with specific organisations and assisting them in accessing to the fair trade marketplace.

POETCOM is a newly formed association of producers and organisations, evolved out of the Pacific Regional Organic Task Force, and is pioneering a regional approach to organics and fair trade in the Pacific Island region.

The organisation supports business development, marketing, product development, fair trade accreditation, organic certification, capacity building and linkages between nations in the region.

ENDS.

For the first time, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), was represented at the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) Regional Pacific Rim meeting, which was held from 11-13 May 2010 in Madison, Wisconsin, USA. This signifies a crucial step in achieving market access for products produced by fair trade organisations in the Pacific Islands, [...]

A little something our FACT project has been assisting with – makes working in Fiji all the sweeter.

Talei x

OPPORTUNITY FOR LABASA’S SUGAR GROWERS

 Approximately 5,000 sugarcane farmers who supply their cane to Labasa mill in Vanualevu, Fiji will soon benefit financially from a pilot project that will certify their farms as Fairtrade.

This was made possible after interest was shown by Tate & Lyle of United Kingdom, the largest buyers of sugar from Fiji.

According to Mohammed Habib, Fairtrade coordinator for Fiji Sugar, Tate and Lyle have committed to buying Fairtrade sugar from Fiji in order to sell to its consumers in Great Britain.

‘Under the Fairtrade system, farmers have to comply with Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO) International standards to be certified,’ he said.

“FLO is an International Fairtrade organisation and aims to improve conditions for small producers and farm workers” said Mr Habib.

Mr Habib added that under Fairtrade system, farmers will be paid a Fairtrade premium in addition to the price of sugar.  “This money is meant to be used to improve the lives of the farmers, their families and communities.”

“Presently the Fairtrade premium is US$60 per tonne of sugar and this Fairtrade premium is paid after farmers’ representative organization, and the exporter (Fiji Sugar Corporation) has sent reports to FLO-Cert.”

These ‘flow of goods’ reports state the volume of Fairtrade products sold and the amount of premium earned.

This, Habib added, provides a transparent medium for all cane growers and industry stakeholders to know how much they will earn from the sale of sugar under Fairtrade.

FLO-Cert representative visited Fiji in 2008 for an initial survey, and recommended a few changes in the current production system that would enable Fairtrade certification. These recommendations included developing 1) an environmental plan that provides details on how to comply with environmental standards, and 2) a plan to ensure that agrochemicals on the FLO Prohibited Materials List (e.g. paraquat) are not used on farms.

The initial survey also recommended developing an awareness campaign in inform all members of the organisation about Fairtrade and its main principles, rules and regulations.

Other recommendations included having a democratically elected representative body, with equal voting rights for all members as the supreme decision-making body for Fairtrade issues, and a plan to encourage women to be more involved in the functioning of the organisation.

The survey also recommended establishing a committee of cane grower representatives to be responsible for the transparent administration and management of the premium money, and a proper appeal mechanism if discrepancies in payment are found.

Since 2008, efforts to get the sugarcane produced in Labasa to be Fairtrade certified has gained momentum, and it is envisaged that first shipment of fair trade sugar will leave Malau port (Labasa) by the end of August this year.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community thorough its Land Resources Division’s Facilitating Agriculture Commodity Trade project is supporting the Project Management Unit for the National Adaptation Strategy for Sugar in expediting the certification process.

A little something our FACT project has been assisting with – makes working in Fiji all the sweeter. Talei x OPPORTUNITY FOR LABASA’S SUGAR GROWERS  Approximately 5,000 sugarcane farmers who supply their cane to Labasa mill in Vanualevu, Fiji will soon benefit financially from a pilot project that will certify their farms as Fairtrade. This [...]