Canaan Fair Trade In The Washington Post

Fair Trade the White House supporter, Canaan Fair Trade, made the news yesterday for their quality olive oil they sell to sustain 1,200 farmers through The Palestine Fair Trade Association.

The West Bank's gold

A Palestinian cooperative looks to trade olive oil for foreign cash

Palestinian farmer Mur'eb Kaileh, 70, with bags of olives that will eventually be processed for oil at a facility on the outskirts of Ramallah. (Muhammed Muheisen/associated Press)

By Howard Schneider

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

For centuries, olive harvesting here has been a mostly local industry.

Farmers, their relatives and neighbors beat the trees with sticks or strip the olives from branches by hand, then cart them to a local press and sell or trade the oil in nearby markets. Harvest workers keep a share of the crop for their labor, and olive press owners keep a share of the oil -- a testament to the small-scale, bartered nature of the undertaking.

That model can help sustain a household, but in a new factory on the outskirts of this northern West Bank village, an effort is underway to reshape the olive industry so it can help sustain a wider Palestinian economy...

Read the rest.

Alter Eco

Alter Eco is committed to the following:

• Playing an active part to wed product quality and a sustainable approach centered on people and our planet.

• Promoting Fair Trade and increasing awareness about fair trade amongst consumers in the northern hemisphere.

• Transparency and traceability.

"We are a team of fair trade visionaries and food-loving explorers on a mission to connect you to our farmers and their honest foods. When you taste the sweet justice of our mission you will understand our persistence, and our invitation to join us in finding you Alter Eco."

Decadent chocolate, nutritious quinoa, tasty teas...check out their website for a whole lot more and take your time to learn more about fair trade and the relationships Alter Eco has forged through their responsible trading methods. You can also write a personal message to the farmers!

Alter Eco proudly offers products certified by Trans Fair USA, is a member of the Fair Trade Federation and Green America and supports Fair Trade the White House.

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Canaan Fair Trade

A favorite of Fair Trade the White House is Canaan Fair Trade. Not only do they harvest and supply quality, organic edibles, they employ marginalized Palestinian laborers caught in conflict to earn sustainable wages. Based in Jenin, Palestine, Canaan Fair Trade sells olive oil and other delicacies produced by over 1,700 small farmers organized in informal cooperatives and represented by the Palestine Fair Trade Association (PFTA). They supply bulk as well as finished and packaged olive oil and other goods to Europe, North America and the Middle East.

From Olive Oil to Wild Thyme to Couscous to an assortment of Whole Olives, Canaan Fair Trade is the label to look for. Available in many retail outlets.

Canaan Fair Trade is a member of the Palestinian Fair Trade Association, Fair Trade Federation and Fair Trade the White House. They are certified by USDA Organic and Fair For Life (IMO)