Category Archives: Fairtrade

Coffee can literally mean life (even when it’s not 8am)

Posted on 16 February, 2011 by | 1 Comment

Did you know that Ethiopia is called the birthplace of coffee?

The Oromo people have used the coffee bean for food, drink, trade, spiritual nourishment and as a tool for peace-keeping.

Coffee is life to the Oromo

Coffee is life to the Oromo

It is part of their mythology and for them it is ‘life’. Most people’s idea of coffee as life is a much needed boost on a Monday morning. But, for the Oromo people in the UK, it is their link to their community back home.

They have set up the first ever community business to trade coffee directly to the UK and have selected three organic quality coffees from Ethiopia – Yirgacheffe, Harar and Limu to begin their journey.

Yirgacheffe for the daytime (strength 3)
Harar for that morning start (strength 4)
Limu for after dinner memories (strength 5)

A superb coffee range - smells so rich!

A superb coffee range - smells so rich!

All of the great Arabica coffees of the world can be traced back to the Oromia region. The altitude, climate, soil and terrain in the Oromia highlands exist in perfect harmony to create some of the world’s finest coffees.

As a Fairtrade coffee every purchase ensures a good price for smallholder farmers in Ethiopia.

Their hope is that you will love their coffee as much as they do!

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Fairtrade, Organic

Tagged , ,

9 ideas for reusing Simpkins Travel Sweet tins

Posted on 22 December, 2010 by | Leave a comment

The traditional sweet makers, Simpkins, have also provided us with one of the best recyclable materials to re-use. Here are just a few suggestion:

Home-made candles – Use soy or bees wax for simple candles
Secret mini safe - Hide your spare keys, money, jewelry in an innocent box
Cookie guardian - A mini lunch-box for crumbly food, espeically Simpkins cookies (or the other half of that no-added-sugar Simpkins chocolate bar)

So helpful, so useful. Simpkins.

So helpful, so useful. Simpkins.

First aid box – Useful for when you’re away from home
Money boxes – Punch a hole in the top for your spare coppers
Maggot tin – Every angler needs a few
Seed stash – Keep seeds dry for next year
Sewing kit – Needles and thread, buttons and beads, organise everything! (Very useful for fuses and nuts and blots too.)
Promoting fair trade – Simpkins now have sweets made with Fairtrade sugar from the Kasinthula Cane Growers farmer’s project in South Malawi. All the tins contain Natural Colours and Flavours and are vegan too. What easier way to make a fairer world than sucking on a sweet?

New Fairtrade flavours include:
Mixed Fruit
Forest Fruit
Orange, Lemon & Grapefruit
Mixed Mint

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Fairtrade, Vegan

Tagged , , , , , , ,

Look out for the new ad – on TV from Monday 25th November

Posted on 22 October, 2010 by | Leave a comment

There’s a new advert on TV.

It’s from Clipper teas.

The focus is on Clipper’s Organic and Fairtrade Black Teas, but tea-merchants are well known for providing coffees, herbal teas, cocoa and speciality teas as well.

Clipper - purveyor of numerous blends of tea

Clipper - purveyor of numerous blends of tea

I get to sample so many! On my desk right now are boxes of Clipper’s Red Fruits & Aronia Berry, Blackcurrent & Acai Berry, Green Tea with Manuka Honey, Chamomile, Peppermint, White Tea, Chamomile with Lemon Balm & Manuka Honey and their Instant Organic Hot Chocolate (though that last one is on my desk for an entirely personal reasons).

There’s a serious point to this however. Many children are involved in child labour in the tea industry. Buying Fairtrade means you can act to put something back into the tea growing communities who make a stand for fairness for their families. It’s a chance to help Clipper help others as well.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Fairtrade, General Food, Organic

Tagged , , , ,

It’s chocolate week – probably the most indulgent week of the year

Posted on 11 October, 2010 by | Leave a comment

It’s chocolate week 2010: 11th – 17th October (…and we’ve got a recipe for you…)

We’re pleased to say that one of our favourite hero companies, Divine Chocolate, is sponsoring the event with activites all over the UK and culminating in Chocolate Unwrapped – a Saturday and Sunday of luxurious chocolate fayre presented at Vinopolis in London (16th  – 17th October).

 

Divine Chocolate - a heavenly experience...

Divine Chocolate - a heavenly experience...

Divine are a great company, 45% of which is owned by the village farmers who grow the chocolate for Fairtrade. The fine quality of their chocolate means it stands shoulder to shoulder with master chocolatiers.

Sara Jayne-Stanes, Director of the Academy of Culinary Arts, described Divine as “…intense, very smooth, delectable chocolate …Divine is in a league of its own.”

At GoodnessDirect we feature many ethical and specialist chocolates. Divine’s range is perfect for giving, sharing, cooking or just indulging.

But if your mouth isn’t yet watering, here’s a Divine Chocolate pudding recipe, courtesy of the esteemed Pudding Club.

Divine Chocolate Bombe

Three layers of charming chocolate mousse to delight and entertain your dinner guests…

Dark Chocolate Mousse
125g Double cream
45g Divine 70% Dark chocolate
1 Leaf Gelatine

Continue reading →

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Chocolate, Fairtrade, Recipes, Uncategorized

Tagged , , ,

Beauty soap brings out the best in you (and everyone else)

Posted on 7 September, 2010 by | Leave a comment

We believe

    …that luxury bodycare is about more than gorgeous products and great packaging, and should be honestly priced.

    …in creating gorgeous products full of natural ingredients rather than synthetic nasties such as parabens and sulphates.

    …that great packaging looks even better when it’s sustainably sourced, and in making our products in the UK.

    …that treating ourselves feels even better when producers in developing countries are treated fairly.

    …that beauty is about bringing out the best in everyone.

It’s that kind of faith from Bubble&Balm that is getting them noticed – most recently by The Pure Beauty Awards for their Fairtrade Luxury Handwash.

For smooth moisturised skin

For smooth moisturised skin

They are the first ’100% Fairtrade’ bodycare company in the UK, and their products actively support sustainability for the planet and no cruelty to animals.

And there’s no skimping on luxury either: their soaps are gentle on the skin, long-lasting and do not crack or go mushy; providing a rich, soothing and effective lather, leaving your skin to smell fresh and clean with a soft and smooth feel.

Check out their stylish soaps with citrus, lavender or shea butter.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Eco/Environmental, Fairtrade, Lifestyle

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Food price crisis – can Fairtrade help?

Posted on 25 August, 2010 by | 1 Comment

Chocolate prices could be up 20% next year! Perhaps this might provoke millions of women around the world to campaign against the disasterous market gambling on the value of food?

In 2010 food prices have been on the rise again. We could soon see more riots worldwide as we did in 2007/8.

Evidence is gathering that it is the speculation on food prices that is fueling the massive leap in the cost of basic commodoties such as wheat and rice. High prices mean that the world’s poorest can’t afford basic foods despite their availability. During the last crisis this resulted in the malnutrition and even deaths of millions.

Can Fairtrade help in this crisis?

Buying Fairtrade still helps, Photo by Kaihsu Tai

Buying Fairtrade still helps
Photo by Kaihsu Tai

As I look at some new jars of Clipper Fairtrade  and Organic Coffee and Decaf Coffee on my desk, my hope is that buying food like this can still be a voice for sustainable development, even in greedy times.

Will guaranteeing a minimum profit for the farmer mean that Fairtrade prices aren’t so volatile at the consumer end? I’m not sure. Will small farmers (who make up 75% of the world’s poor) always at the mercy of fat cats creaming the best off the profits and leaving economic devastation in their wake? Again, it’s difficult to say. This year has already seen the price of coffee at its highest for 12 years, and cocoa is a staggering 25% more expensive than it was during the food crisis in 2008.

However what Fairtrade can do is bring confidence to the farmer: if they are guaranteed a minimum profit they can afford to budget through hard times and have a greater chance of buying food for their families when prices shoot up; and they can think about investing in the future for their communities, thus helping to lift themselves out of the poverty trap.

So while chaos may reign, Fairtrade farmers will have some reason to feel safer. You can pick up some of their Fairtrade produce here.

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Fairtrade, Organic

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ice Creams Dairy and Non-Dairy

Posted on 15 July, 2010 by | 3 Comments

One of the best things about my job is the free ice cream that occasionally gets delivered to my desk by those nice lads from the freezer department. (Well, you wouldn’t want me talking about food I hadn’t tasted would you?)

This week’s special was a ‘Cappuccino organic ice cream’ with little chunks of chocolate – a sweet coffee flavour delightfully punctuated with dark chocolate morsels. I’m afraid I didn’t wait long to note down all my (*cough) professional observations.

The cappuccino ice cream, made by Cream O’Galloway, is just one of a big range of fairtrade and organic iced sensations – as well as the normal flavours they’ve created strawberry pavlova, elderflower, honey & ginger and banana & choc chip genius desserts as well.

Non dairy ice creams

Non dairy ice creams

Check our online ice cream cabinet for lots more dreamy ice creams for those hot summer days.

Non Dairy Ice Cream

But what if you don’t eat dairy? You don’t have to miss out on delicious after dinner desserts.

Booja Booja, who make amazing vegan chocolate truffles, also make some pretty astounding non dairy ice creams called ‘Stuff in a Tub’.

Other makers include Swedish Glace and Toffuti who make lovely dairy-free and gluten-free flavours. Enjoy a scoop of after dinner mmmm without the fuss.

And I’m excited to say we’re going to stock Worthenshaws Coconuka and Coconice in the near future…

Pop your head into our non dairy freezer section to see if there’s anything to catch your fancy.

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Coeliac (Gluten-Free), Dairy Free, Fairtrade, Gluten-Free, Organic, Vegan

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Chai-tea – I’ve found a new religion

Posted on 14 June, 2010 by | Leave a comment
Tea-thoughts

Tea-thoughts

Perhaps for some people tea is the perfect religion.

If you want a moment’s quiet, what better than finding calm in the depths of a cup of warm copper coloured infusions.

Or if you need some healing, then there are a variety of time-tested tastes to ease your ailments.

Are you desperate for a listening ear and sympathy? Invite your friend over for no better reason than the ritual brew of tea-for-two.

And if you really need to know the future, well, you can always get your aunt to read the tea-leaves…

Of course the humble tea bush and all its adherents won’t quite match the majesty of a higher power, but many a prayer has risen on the incense of a steaming cuppa, and many a moment has been satisfied by the perfect choice of tea at that perfect time.

It’s not as if the gurus of tea making don’t know they’re on to something. You’ve surely noticed how shops’ shelves have become increasingly laden with a greater supply of different teas? Continue reading →

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Fairtrade, Organic

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Booja-Booja Easter Eggs – How would you eat yours? – Competition

Posted on 17 March, 2010 by | 6 Comments

What’s the biggest sin when eating an easter egg?

Not sharing? Not finishing your hoard of chocolate until October? Scoffing it all in a great marathon event which ends with you on the couch vowing you’ll never eat chocolate again?

Whatever you end up doing (hopefully something more virtuous than the above), please don’t do it with the Booja-Booja Luxury Champagne Truffle Egg, it’s far too good to waste on novice chocolate eaters.

Win a beautiful Booja-Booja Easter Egg

Win a beautiful Booja-Booja Easter Egg

We’re talking about wonderously dark chocolate, velvet lined, hiding a trove of champagne truffles within, handcrafted and encased in a hand painted oval box. And because it’s Booja-Booja it’s a practically a blessing for you if you’re vegan or can’t eat gluten or dairy. A wonder to behold!

But here’s surely the greatest transgression of all – we are giving them away!

Booja-Booja luxurious Easter Eggs also come with Hazlenut Crunch, Midnight Expresso and Ginger Wine Truffles but, before I tell you how to win the Champagne Truffle Egg, let me also mention a few other conscientious chocolate eggs which deserve your attention too.

EqualExchange have their own Divine Delights for your exultation; fairtrade naturally, so you know there’s some good in what you’re doing as you munch through all the ruinous chocolate.

Organic oeuvres of fascination are available courtesy of the Chocolate Alchemist – imagine dark Belgian chocolate studded with jewels of crystallised ginger! They also make plates of dark and milk chocolate engraved with creamy motifs.

Or you can try Green & Blacks who are are offering butterscotch eggs of crunchy toffee, thicker chocolate shells, and a host of mini eggs, all organic and fairtrade (of course).

Finally, I’d like to mention Siesta D&D who are specialists in dairy and gluten free chocolates. They have designed lovely boxes of 20 eggs and bunny chocolates for your children to love.

If you can’t wait to get your hands on the Booja-Booja Luxury Champagne Truffle Egg, you can enter the Booja-Booja competition with a simple email to me and I’ll put your name in the draw for one of five prize eggs (competition ends Friday 26 March 2010).

Trust me, win one of these and you’ll be in seventh heaven for days (and hopefully not hours).

→ 6 Comments

Posted in Chocolate, Competitions, Dairy Free, Fairtrade, Gluten-Free, Organic, Uncategorized, Vegan

Tagged , , , , , , ,

The biscuit song – gluten free and ever so nice

Posted on 5 March, 2010 by | 1 Comment

Everyone has their favourite food, some people are mad about tea, some people love chocolate and then there are those people who go crazy over a biscuit…

I present my evidence with Exhibit A: The Ode to Biscuits which features some startling songs about biscuits. Here’s an example: (sung to the tune of American Pie)

Bye, bye Biscuit maker guy, made his biscuits kinda heavy and they always was high an them good ol’ boys were eating biscuits of rye singin if this’ll be the day that they’re dry, then this’ll be the day that I’ll die.

Did you write the recipe of love and do you have faith in God above, to bake them biscuits so, and do you believe in biscuits n’ rolls, can they save your mortal soul and can you teach me how to bake em real slow? Well I know that you’re in love with him cuz I saw you bakin them with him, you both threw off your shoes and I love those biscuits and blues. I was a lonely teenage cookin punk with a white apron and a pick up truck but I knew I was out of luck, the day, the biscuit maker, died. I started singin…

Copywrited to Ben Griffiths ©2005

I don’t know what Don McLean would think of that. He might complain Ben was Killing Him Softly With His Song (it’s a little known fact that Don McLean performance was the inspiration behind that original track). But what I do know is that most Ceoliacs when they taste biscuits can lament ‘The Day the Biscuit Died’. Gluten free biscuits have a tendency to be dry and chalky, crumbly and tasteless. It’s a really hard thing to get right.

That’s where Doves come in. They’re already well known for the organic flour they do and they are also one of the UK’s best known producers of gluten free flour (as well as and gluten free pasta, cereals and baking products) and now biscuits.

They’ve actually been making Gluten-Free cookies for a while but recently brought out some new flavours and I doubt most people would be able to tell the difference.

Of course, I had to do a bit of taste testing:

  • The Lemon Zest Cookies have a lovely zingy taste, with a texture similar to ginger nut biscuits though thankfully less hard.
  • The Chocolate Chip Cookie has that classic choc-chip cookie character: they’re small, delightful and moreish.
  • The Ginger Hazelnut Cookie was possibly my favourite with a great crunch experience and a flavour that fills the mouth.
  • The Double Chocolate Cookie is a deeply rich mouthful which easily leaves you wanting more.
  • The Hazelnut Cookie with A Hint of Orange is moist and tangy, but for me needed to be a bit more fruity.

    • They all dunk really well and, while there is still a hint of a grainy texture, I truly believe anyone who didn’t know would enjoy these for what they are: distinctively premium biscuits – something to sing and dance about I’d say.

    → 1 Comment

    Posted in Coeliac Disease, Fairtrade, Gluten-Free, Organic

    Tagged , , , ,