The North Lanarkshire Council area as a whole gained Fair Trade Zone status in 2020 and support is organised through the North Lanarkshire Fair Trade Zone Steering Group, run by local residents and supported by the council.

North Lanarkshire also has localised zone and town status in Airdrie, Motherwell and Wishaw, with work underway to establish a zone in the Croy and Kilsyth area.

The council has also pledged its commitment to the International Fair Trade Charter which aims to ensure producers are paid a fair price and offered opportunities to participate in global markets without exploitation.

A bid will be submitted in January to maintain the zone status for North Lanarkshire and make a commitment to continuing to promote Fairtrade across local communities, local groups, schools and businesses.

Fairtrade coffee, tea and other products are available in the council’s cafes, leisure and community facilities.

Local schools support the annual Fair Trade Fortnight campaign, and the council has created a bespoke online education platform with Fairtrade resources to support learning in primary schools.

New College Lanarkshire has incorporated Fairtrade themes into Global Citizenship studies for supported learning students who also run a shop on the Motherwell campus selling a range of products. A film commissioned by the Scottish Fair Trade Forum earlier this year showcased the students’ work; the film is available at https://youtu.be/36q78Nc967A. The college received an Outstanding Achievement Award for its work at this year’s Scottish Fair Trade Forum’s annual award ceremony.

“Across North Lanarkshire, community groups, businesses, churches and the council use and sell Fairtrade products, like coffee, sugar and tea, and we would like to see this extended further,” said Councillor Alex McVey, Convener of the Enterprise and Fair Work Committee.

“Fairtrade offers farmers and workers fair prices for their products to help improve their living standards, invest in their communities and businesses, and protect the environment.

“We hope to renew North Lanarkshire’s status in the new year, and continue the excellent work being done locally to help others around the world.”

John McDonald, Chair of the Fair Trade Zone Steering Group, said: “It’s great news that once again we have cross party support for Fair Trade in North Lanarkshire, an action that goes beyond Scotland. This solidarity in North Lanarkshire shows the continued commitment given in 2020 to the ‘International Fair Trade Charter’ empowering producers against exploitation and ensuring that they are paid a fair price for their produce in the global markets.”

Any individual, group or business interested in supporting Fairtrade initiatives in North Lanarkshire, please contact BusinessSupport@northlan.gov.uk or follow North Lanarkshire’s Fairtrade activity on X (formerly Twitter) - @FairtradeNLan

For more information, visit www.fairtrade.org.uk/ or www.scottishfairtradeforum.org.uk/