This Fairtrade Fortnight (27 Feb to 12 March) AFC Community Trust is delighted to be working with the Aberdeen Fairtrade Steering Group to support Aberdeen’s Fairtrade campaign.

Fairtrade products range from tea, coffee, sugar, cocoa and bananas through to flowers, gold and perhaps surprisingly … footballs.

With support from the local Fairtrade steering group, the local Co-op and Scottish company Bala Sport footballs, we have been introducing some Fairtrade themed elements into our community activities over Fairtrade fortnight.

We have teamed up with local campaigners and Bala Sport to use Fairtrade footballs in some of our community activities during Fairtrade fortnight and we are encouraging local clubs and groups to look into whether they could use Fairtrade balls in their games.

The local Midnight League already uses Bala’s fair trade balls in their matches and they featured as the official match ball at last year’s Homeless World Cup in Glasgow.

The balls are hand-stitched in Pakistan by workers receiving a fair price for their labour.

We have also been introducing some Fairtrade snacks and activities into our Footy Tea and Torry United sessions over the fortnight and plan to show our support by signing the local pledge to support Fairtrade in Aberdeen.

Aberdeen has been a Fairtrade city since 2004 and local schools, community groups, churches and universities will all be celebrating Fairtrade Fortnight.

As well as lots of opportunities to try out Fairtrade products, the serious side of Fairtrade is that the products that bear the Fairtrade mark ensure that workers in developing countries are paid a fair price for the products they make, with a small premium going to support local initiatives like schools and clinics.

For more information on the range of initiatives AFC Community Trust supports email [email protected]

If you’d like to sign the City’s Fairtrade pledge please see aberdeencity.gov.uk/fairtradepledge/