Awareness of Fairtrade up 11% after successful campaign

The Fairtrade Foundation reports that fans of Fairtrade goods turned out ‘in their thousands’ to spread the message of this year’s Be the Change campaign, which raised awareness by 11% during Fairtrade Fortnight.

The 2024 campaign harnessed consumers’ collective power to support farmers overseas in building stronger and more resilient communities, thereby protecting the future of everyday essentials enjoyed by millions of people in the UK.

It highlighted how the cumulative impact of our purchasing decisions can affect household favourites such as bananas, chocolate and coffee — items which two new YouGov research studies show to be Britain’s best Fairtrade buys (bananas 57%; chocolate 54%; and coffee 43%).

The research, commissioned by the Fairtrade Foundation, found that almost nine in ten Brits value fair pay for farmers; 69% claim to have purchased a Fairtrade product in the last year; and 60% would like more action from government.  

Be the Change achieved an uplift in awareness-driven purchases of Fairtrade items, with 83% of people saying they bought a Fairtrade product as a result of seeing Fairtrade Fortnight marketing activities — up from 74% in 2023 [Kantar Profiles].

From breakfasts and fashion shows to film screenings and treasure hunts, there were over 600 grassroots events nationwide, including at over 1,000 schools. Over 200 digital billboards positioned outside flagship supermarkets in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and Manchester thanked shoppers for supporting Fairtrade and shared calls to action to amplify the message.

In Parliament, newly-elected MPs received thousands of public letters inviting them to take their own Be the Change pledge (the Foundation reports that 85 MPs have signed up, with hopes of higher numbers during Q4). Ugandan coffee farmer Jenipher Sambazi addressed others in Government, sharing her first-hand account of the challenges faced by coffee harvesters and emphasizing the benefits that Fairtrade certification brings to cooperative members.

Mike Gidney, Fairtrade Foundation CEO, says he is ‘blown away’ by support for this years campaign.: “I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has taken part: schools, places of worship, places of work, communities across the country working with retailers and brands to ‘Be the Change’. You have made us so proud.”

By Rosie Greenaway, editor