Wellspring and Fairtrade

Wellspring is a Fairtrade Church, accredited by the Fairtrade Foundation.
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We support the Fairtrade movement as a practical expression of our concern that so many people continue to live in poverty because the world’s trading system is stacked against them.  We benefit from this, taking it for granted that we can afford to enjoy products grown thousands of miles away such as tea, coffee, bananas and chocolate, while all too often those who produce them go hungry. 
We are particularly concerned about the effect of climate change on small-scale farmers and workers in countries such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Honduras.  They have done the least to contribute to climate change, yet are disproportionately affected by it. The climate crisis is the biggest threat to the livelihoods of millions of small-scale farmers and agricultural workers in low-income countries worldwide.  Supporting Fairtrade enables us to become part of the solution, instead of remaining part of the problem.
Seeing the Fairtrade Mark on products assures us that the producers received a living wage and worked in decent conditions.  All tea, coffee and sugar used in Wellspring hospitality is Fairtrade.  We also commit ourselves to spreading the word about Fairtrade so that increasing numbers of people swap to Fairtrade products and more farmers can sell their produce through the Fairtrade system.

​During lockdown in 2021, while our Annex was being built, Wellspring members produced a booklet of Fairtrade recipes to mark Fairtrade Fortnight.  Our church, complete with new Annex was handed back to us in Fairtrade Fortnight 2022, and we celebrated with a Fairtrade lunch of bread, soup and cakes make from recipes in the booklet. 
Our recipe booklet is available on request.