Get rapping with fairtrade bananas this weekend

fairtrade bananas join the rapWhen it comes to environmental and ethical living, it’s the youngest generation we need to influence. They are our future, after all.

Little Miss Green has been bought up with the idea that recycling is ‘normal’, that turning off the lights when we leave the room is ‘the thing to do’, or that buying from sweatshops is not even considered (no matter how appealing or ‘cheap’ the product).

We’re in the midst of Fairtrade Fortnight now, but have you heard of the ‘Go bananas!’ campaign? From noon on Friday 6 March to noon Saturday 7 March, thousands of people across the UK will be eating a fairtrade banana in an attempt to beat the world record for the greatest number of people eating a Fairtrade banana in a 24-hour period! Over 200,000 people are signed up so far.

Behind all the fun is the serious message about the true cost of cheap bananas and unfair trade rules. For example, most banana plantation workers earn less than £1 a day as supermarkets enter price wars. There can be devastating health and environmental effects produced from use of fertilizers and pesticides, so that we, in the western world, can enjoy a ‘perfect banana’.

These are just two of the hazards facing banana growers across the world; download the full report here.

To appeal to the younger generation, The Fairtrade Foundation has teamed up with ethical marketing agency Feel, to create a humorous rap animation called “Rapping Bananas“. It is targeted at  16 to 24 year olds, to encourage young people to take part in the Go Bananas for Fairtrade action this Fairtrade Fortnight (23 February – 8 March). Relax for a minute and click on the video to watch!

Are you taking part in the Go Bananas campaign? If your local shop doesn’t stock fair trade bananas, why not ask them to consider doing this? You can order some ‘stock it!‘ card from the fairtrade organisation website.

Alternatively, choose from some of the delicious banana recipes and make something special this weekend.

Let me know how you are going to celebrate!