Truck of Fairtrade Bananas © Fairtrade Foundation

Fair Trade Fortnight
Find out about the events this year

New Card Range!
We now have a new and extensive range of different cards. Hand made, embroidered, recycled, humorous, special occasion (don’t forget Mothers’ Day isn’t so far away) we even have cards for men!

Guilt-free chocolate cake By Annie Bell

Now that we have moved and have more room, we have branched out and are stocking a collection of ethical clothes which we know you will just love! Made by an Australian company based in London called Braintree, the stylish and contemporary clothes are made from ecological fibres rather than regular cotton. The company is committed to the highest environmental and ethical production standards, protecting the people and the planet - as the label says, "wear what the world can afford".

But if this all sounds a bit worthy be assured - they are clothes you will want to wear: they feel and look great. The small range includes: men's t shirts (short and long sleeved), shirts and trousers; and ladies tops (t-shirts, shirts and tunics), trousers and an amazing skirt that can be worn 4 different ways including as a sun dress! The clothes are all made from hemp, an amazing fibre.

Cannabis hemp was the world's largest agricultural crop for over 2000 years, producing up to 80% of all textiles and fibres for paper production until prohibition in the 1930s. Hemp is now being rediscovered as a valuable source of clothes and textiles, fuel and food.

So what's 'eco' about hemp?

• It's a tough and hard-wearing fibre, which doesn?t require herbicides or pesticides and needs little water and grows rapidly allowing 4 harvests a year.
• Hemp clothes repel up to 95% of UV sunlight; other fabrics only manage between 30 and 70%.
• Compared with cotton, hemp fibres are 3 times stronger, are softer, and are warmer in winter and cooler in summer.

Hemp contrasts with regular cotton which is grown on less than 1% of the world's surface but uses a whopping 25% of all pesticides and herbicides.^*

The new eco clothes are fashionable but also very wearable and practical, so why not pop in store soon and have a look for yourself!

Information dervived from Braintree, except * - statistics from The Observer Magazine, p.31, 14/03/2010.

LaFT; Leicester Advocating Fair Trade in collaboration with Divine Chocolate, is delighted to announce a special programme of events on 24th, 25th and 27th February to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight.

Two cocoa farmers are travelling over from Ghana and visiting the people of Leicester in honour of the occasion. The farmers belong to a co-operative called Kuapa Kokoo in Ghana which consists of 45,000 cocoa farmers and which supplies cocoa to the leading Fairtrade chocolate company, Divine Chocolate. The two farmers are visiting Leicester to talk to a range of audiences about how fairer trading is helping to change lives in Ghana. They will also be explaining how the farmers’ co-operative actually owns 45% of Divine itself – and how this pioneering business model means an even better deal for farmers.

Secretary Of State opens the new Just Shop October 2009
	Douglas Alexander, the Secretary of State for International Development came to Leicester on 29th October. He opened the new Just Shop and presented the 2009 Just Fair Trade Prize for the best essay in the Health and Development Module at Leicester University Medical School to Andy King. DFID recently announced a £12m investment in Fair Trade over the next 4 years.

Here is the DFID press release with our very own Kerry chatting to the Minister and here is how it was reported on thisisleicestershire.co.uk . Below is how our friends at Citizenseye reported the event.

Just is moving in the run up to Christmas! We'll be in St Martin's Square on the corner with Silver Street. See you there! Sarah explains why ...

...make your just move - have a fairtrade Christmas.

In Malawi only 1 in 3 children attend High School and yet education is one of the most effective ways to escape poverty. If a farmer in Malawi can sell 90kg of rice he can afford to send one of his children to High School for a year. At Just since the Spring our customers have bought over 90kg - thank you! You can help by buying more in the shop or through Just Near You.