Canadian Imports Fair Trade, Organic Bananas

VANCOUVER - Feb 5/04 - SNS -- An organic home delivery company based here say it is the first Canadian retailer to offer certified organic Fair Trade bananas.

"I will feel even better eating bananas this year - and so will our customers," says David Van Seters, CEO of SPUD.ca. "By eating Canada's first Fair Trade bananas, we'll be contributing directly to fair working wages, sustainable farming practices, education and affordable housing in Ecuadorian communities. Rarely can you make such a simple healthy choice, and such a difference, at the same time."

The Fair Trade movement has worked for 15 years to help thousands of small-scale producers in developing countries improve their quality of life. By avoiding the middleman, Fair Trade practices help establish a fair price for products and long-term guaranteed markets.

The Fair Trade banana commitment goes a step further by also establishing social and environmental criteria for workers. This addresses the poor working conditions and environmental degradation caused by excessive fungicide and pesticide use in conventional banana cultivation. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Pesticide Program, in Central America conventional banana plantations apply as much as 30 kilograms of pesticides per hectare per year. This is more than 10 times the average for intensive agriculture in industrialized countries.

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