Graham is getting behind Fairtrade Fortnight as he met with Foncho, a Colombian Banana producer, to learn about sustainable and responsible food sourcing.
Graham said: “I was really pleased to show my support for the campaign to Make Bananas Fair and meet Albeiro Alfonso ‘Foncho’ Cantillo Ruiz, a banana farmer from Cienaga in Colombia.
“The UK eats over five billion bananas a year; 80% of which are bought from major supermarkets that are continually battling with each other in a very competitive price war. In the past 10 years, the UK supermarket sector has almost halved the shelf price of loose bananas while the cost of producing them has doubled. We now typically pay 11p for a loose banana compared with 18p a decade ago, while a loose apple grown in the UK now costs 20p. The resulting drop in export prices for bananas in producing countries means an ever-tightening squeeze on what producers earn for their bananas. This, combined with escalating production and living costs, means many farmers and workers’ standards of living have progressively worsened in the past decade.
“Hearing about the impact of Fairtrade and the need to make bananas fair, first hand from Foncho was very powerful. I was happy to sign the pledge and support the campaign. It was great to see so many young people there engaging in the ‘fairandfunky’ workshop and learning how they too can support Fairtrade and change the world.”