Cllr Mark Bee, Leader of Waveney District Council is encouraging residents to purchase Fairtrade goods to help guarantee a fair deal for producers in the Developing World.

Lowestoft and Beccles are ‘Fairtrade Towns’, with the former staging an awareness event on Saturday March 8 to promote the importance and benefits of Fairtrade as part of ‘Fairtrade Fortnight’ which commenced this week. Cllr Bee hopes that the people of Waveney will attend the event and show their support for this important cause.

“The principles of Fairtrade ensure that people around the world are paid a fair price for the things they make and grow and by doing this we can help them out of poverty.

“I would therefore ask everyone to consider coming along to the Fairtrade event on March 8, not only to learn more about the issues but also to purchase Fairtrade goods. Buying just one item can make a real difference.”

The Lowestoft event takes place at Stella Maris Hall, Gordon Road from 10am to 3pm and will feature a number of ‘Traidcraft’ products as well as children’s activities and refreshments.

Cllr Bee continued: “Here at Waveney District Council we are undertaking a Senior Management level audit of our product procurement to see how we can increase our own commitment to Fairtrade and I hope that we can set an example to the rest of the community.”

To learn more about Fairtrade go to their website: www.fairtrade.org.uk