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information for the concerned consumer
Beyond a Fair Price: the Co-operative Movement and Fair Trade
Cooperatives for Development have just launched a new report entitled 'Beyond a Fair Price' which examines the history of co-operative involvement in the Fair Trade movement and makes recommendations for the future of Fair Trade.
Cooperatives for Development is a programme of the Co-operative College. It is supports and strengthens the contribution that co-operatives make to poverty reduction through research and policy work.
Download the document here
Reports warn of troubled fish stocks
Two recent reports have both warned about the state of the world fish population. "Hungry Oceans" by environmental group Oceana warned that the growing trend of eating smaller "prey" fish such as herring and squid is depriving larger "predator" fish of their food, who are already threatened by overfishing. The UN report said that aquaculture may not grow to meet demand and their declining fish stocks pose a potential problem for humans. Both reports warned of the effect of climate change as it could lead to migrations and fish populations can collapse during warm periods.
Global trade and the food crisis
The campaigning organisation 'War on Want' is challenging the global rules that have contributed to the current food crisis. They work with partner groups across the world to mitigate the effects of decades of global 'free trade' rules set by a World Trade Organisation lobbied by powerful countries. The current crisis has been exacerbated by the destabilising of government support, leaving small farmers unable to respond to the natural fluctuations in food production.
War on Want is involved in projects such as the one run by MONLAR, their Sri Lankan partner organisation. By providing farmers with training, seeds, equipment and knowledge, they have helped smallholders grow all their own food, insulating them from the effects of rising food prices.
