Do it Fair and support food producers fighting climate change

Angus Coull • June 18, 2026

Fair on The Planet is Chapter 2 of the Fairtrade Foundation's Do it Fair Campaign. We are with them!

This summer, the Fairtrade Foundation are shining a spotlight on the climate crisis. “The products we rely on every day – from coffee to bananas – are under threat. And so are the livelihoods of the people who produce them. Farmers are facing increasingly unpredictable weather, failing harvests and rising costs, often without the support they need to adapt. And they are being forced to shoulder the burden of a crisis they did little to create.”

As importers of Fairtrade Certified tea and other Fair Trade food products we get this. We hear regularly from the producer groups in the global south of the divesting effects of climate change they face, from floods to drought the impact on their production is huge.

This is the first of three short blogs on this matter, in the second we will focus on the producer groups. In this one we focus the action we are taking at our Paisley warehouse, based the WFTO 10 Principles of Fair Trade.

"Respect for the Environment" is one of the ten fair trade principles which True Origin adheres to as a WFTO Guaranteed Member, and one which has clearly increased in importance as the extent of the climate emergency has become ever clearer.

We believe there can be no climate justice without fair trade, highlighting that smallholder farmers and workers are part of the solution to the climate crisis. Over recent years we have reviewed our Environmental Policy, and this is driving actions throughout our business:

We have significantly increased our organic range For example, Black Mamba's organic chillies) conscious of the benefits this brings to the planet.
Picking and packing at source is a focus. For instance, Sunshine Nut Co. roasts, packages and ships cashews and cashew nut butters directly from Mozambique, resulting in fresher flavour, a smaller carbon footprint, and life-changing impact for farmers, families, and factory workers.
After much research on different packaging options over several years, we moved to recyclable Kilombero Rice bags. We worked with National Flexible to make our rice bags recyclable. National Flexible is a carbon neutral company who provide sustainable solutions to packaging.
We have supported our parent charity, True Origin Partnerships as they raised funds for example for a Briquette Project led by women farmers in Malawi, seeking to reduce deforestation and waste by creating fuel briquettes from waste rice husks.
We have reviewed our waste streams and increased the percentage we recycle.
We have implemented changes to our shipping practices to reduce the carbon footprint associated with imports - double layering containers and consolidating shipments from two suppliers to maximize the container fill and avoid waste.
We have really focused on eliminating food waste in the community, using our foodbank fund to give any short-dated stock away.
We have replaced the lighting throughout our warehouse and offices with energy efficient LED lighting.
We have taken an active part in Veganuary, highlighting the benefits of introducing plant-based meals to your diet and increasing the range of vegan friendly recipes on our website.
We launched new resources within our 90kg Rice Challenge packs to enable schools to teach about climate change with real-life examples.

This summer, the Fairtrade Foundation is shining a spotlight on the climate crisis. “The products we rely on every day – from coffee to bananas – are under threat. And so are the livelihoods of the people who produce them. Farmers are facing increasingly unpredictable weather, failing harvests and rising costs, often without the support they need to adapt. And they are being forced to shoulder the burden of a crisis they did little to create.”

As importers of Fairtrade Certified tea and other Fair Trade food products we get this. We hear regularly from the producer groups in the global south of the devestating effects of climate change they face, from floods to drought the impact on their production is huge.

Choosing True Origin products empowers consumers to help make a difference directly on producers and the environment. If you want to go beyond buying fair trade products, you can turn your attention to Westminster.

The Fairtrade Foundation is calling on the government to pass a new law that would ensure all businesses address human rights abuses and climate damage behind their products. Please consider signing their petition.