Fairtrade firm puts producers centre stage

摘要

Formed following the crisis that followed the collapse of the International Coffee Agreement in 1989, which exposed farmers worldwide to financial insecurity as prices plummeted to 30 year lows, Cafedirect was founded by Oxfam, Traidcraft, Equal Exchange and Twin Trading, to help strengthen the influence, income and security of coffee growers in the South and to link them directly to the consumer in the West. Fifteen years on, Cafedirect recently reshaped its management team in a bid to pursue international markets for expansion, with CEO Penny Newman moving into a new role with a dedicated focus on rolling out the brand in Asia, North America, and Europe, and Clive Gardiner appointed as UK Managing Director with the remit to further develop the business, which currently has a turnover of 19.75 million, in the increasingly competitive UK Fairtrade market.