Sunday 23 November 2014

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #362 Buy Fair Trade Tea

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #362 Buy Fair Trade Tea


Sadly, tea production is another one of those areas where people can be exploited. Growing tea is a sensitive business, with reliable and regular rainfall and important factor. Global warming has made rainfall less reliable and this impacts on tea production and consequently on the people employed in the industry. With profits at risk, some plantations resort to forced labour and child labour. This is undesirable, and we can make an impact on how people around the world are treated by purchasing products that we can be sure are produced by companies that stick to fair trade practices. We need to support the right companies so we know their workers are paid fair wages, that children are not used for labour, and that people are free to leave if they choose. We want to be sure that the people who work on plantations are not completely reliant on the plantation owners for all their basic needs, which puts them in a position from which they cannot break free. You can find a list of fair trade teas and tea companies at www.ratetea.com - see if your preferred brand is there, and if not, change to one that is fair trade, and look after your fellow man.

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