Bananaman joined banana girl to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight at Trillium this year! 
Total number of Fair Trade bananas used during the fortnight for the fruit baskets and as part of the ingredients for the cakes etc was approximately: 2,620!
On Friday 6th March – 452 bananas were hand delivered to all the occupants at 140 London Wall and 3rd Floor Aldersgate so that everyone could participate in the Go Bananas for Fair Trade effort.
Trillium’s Fairtrade commitment is not just for “Fortnight” as it is part of the Catering Strategy applicable across the business that we work in a sustainable way, across “product”, “place” and “people”. On each contract we operate and as part of HQ functions Fairtrade is part of the agreed Sustainable Catering Strategy – “it’s how we do business”. Each contract has an annual business development plan in line with objectives of Public Sector Food Procurement Initiative, which sets out key objectives and KPIs to measure these with. In each case there is commitment from the catering service partners, to deliver these.
140 London Wall and 140 Aldersgate:
· Posters and promotional materials from the Fair Trade Foundation were in place in the common areas of the building to encourage all occupants to participate in events and to promote the Fortnight.
· Fairtrade Guides are in place in all reception areas.
· To launch the Fortnight on the morning of the 23rd February 2009, there was a Banana Drop to all Trillium & Telereal employees across the buildings.
· The Coffee Cart & Sandwich Trolley will have additional Fairtrade products (fruit juice, confectionary) and banana products including freshly baked goods
· From the 24th – 27th Feb & 2nd -5th March a complimentary Fairtrade afternoon tea is being provided to each of the floors in rotation. This will consist of freshly baked banana cakes / banana muffins / banoffee pie and anything else chef can think up. These were a real wow and the feedback on the Banoffee has been amazing – brilliant effort by the team.
· Friday 6th March will be finale, when there will be another Banana Drop and all present in the building will be encouraged to take part in a “Bananathon” to support the record attempt, taking place from noon 6th to noon 7th March. The MITIE team are entering the fun of the event and “Banana Man” will be persuading people to join in and eat a banana!
Please note:
· The coffee cart serves Fairtrade tea/coffee and Chocolate as standard.
· All hospitality teas, coffee, sugars are Fairtrade
· All self brew beverages and sugars in teapoints are Fairtrade (though all have Kenco Singles as well).
Department for Work and Pensions
The launch event for the Fortnight was an event with DWP and Eurest at Caxton House, London, where Cornelius Lynch, a banana grower from St Lucia spoke about how Fair Trade had directly helped him and other small producers on the island. He said,
"Fairtrade has had a huge impact on me and our communities in many ways. Beginning with improving the standard of living, changing the mind-set of little or no regard for the environment, bringing people of common objectives together, empowering producers and communities, and the list goes on. In short, Fairtrade has proven to be our window of hope in this global environment."
The key message that come across was that producer co-operatives receive an agreed and stable price for their products that covers the cost of sustainable production and enables them to support their families and provide for a better future. They also receive an investment premium, which they get to decide democratically on how this is spent to benefit the wider community. The key issue being that they decide, not a Government official or Charity worker. In addition, the fact that as growers they are encouraged to implement more sustainable farming methods by reducing chemical usage, recycling waste, protecting water courses and supplies and are audited on this is a valuable support to the “brand”.
On arrival the attendees enjoyed a variety of homemade muffins (Banana and Ginger/Chocolate and Banana/Spiced Carrot Pecan and Banana) – all with the usual array of Fairtrade teas and coffee. As an extra special treat to close the event the Caxton House team produced Butterscotch Banoffee Pie and Banana and Walnut Cake – with Cornelius proving rather partial to the Banoffee Pie!
Across the Fortnight, in common with London Wall all larger DWP restaurants will have displays of posters promoting the Fortnight and will have for sale an increased range of products, with new products, such as
- Fairbreak Wafers
- Choc Chip Shortbread
- All Butter Flapjacks
- Cherry & Sultana Muffin
Joining the tried and tested products that sell all year round
- Fairtrade Fruit Juices
- Divine Chocolate Bars
- Geobars
- Teas
- Coffees
The catering teams are also practicing their banana based cake recipes to be ready for the “BIG Banana Bake Off” recipes including…
- Banana & Walnut Muffins
- Banana Rock Cakes
- Date & Banana Bars
- Banana Bakewell Tart
Will be “in production” and perfected by the big event.
The catering teams will, be participating in the “BIG Banana Bake Off”. The idea is that teams will bake as many different cakes, cookies, flapjacks, muffins and sweet treats that they can using Fairtrade Bananas on Friday 6th March 09. All bananas used will count to the record attempt. So eat for Victory!
DVLA, Swansea
· The catering team at the DVLA have decorated the cafes and restaurants with posters promoting “Fortnight” and have special displays a number of FAIRTRADE products, with information on their origins and where they can be purchased both retail and within the catering service. The theme is that “FAIRTRADE doesn't have to be expensive"
· Each day the menu will feature a dish per day using fair trade produce, and chef has some interesting main meals incorporating bananas! Anyone purchasing a featured meal will be entered into a prize draw to win a hamper consisting of the displayed products.
· The newly opened Starbucks Café in the new A Block at the Morriston site will be running promotions and explaining their commitment to FAIRTRADE, with leaflets, marketing material and giving away free cups of FAIRTRADE coffee.
· The culmination of the Fortnight is of course the record attempt, again on Friday 6th March, with the holding of a Marathon Banana eating event to support and highlight Fairtrade products. The local senior school, St Josephs, has a group of pupils joining the catering team, at each site, at 9.30am and in the restaurant and on the Trolley Services, all suitably decorated, with their Fairtrade hats on, will "persuade" DVLA staff to purchase a banana to be eaten at 11.00am. Each banana sold will be accompanied with a handout explaining what it is, who it works and how people can assist. The Avenance Staff and the children will wear the official Fairtrade banana tee shirt. The restaurant will also serenade customers with "the banana boat song" (Harry Belafonte). Any profits will be donated to the school for their chosen charity, which they will be presented with by the DVLA Human Resources Director, after they have been fed a light lunch in recognition of their hard work.
A further update on all events will follow when the Fortnight has been completed.