An annual appointment: Fair Trade Breakfast with the EU ambassadors

The Chair of the European Parliament Committee on International Trade, MEP Bernd Lange (S&D, Germany) hosted the second Fair Trade breakfast with the EU Ambassadors on 6 September 2016 at the European Parliament in Brussels. Guests were the European Union Ambassadors to 15 countries in the Global South. The event took place in the context of the annual meeting of the EU Ambassadors with the European Parliament in Brussels. The main objective was to “promote through the EU delegations and in cooperation with the High Representative, fair and ethical trade schemes to small producers in third countries, building on existing best practice initiatives”.
This meeting also served as an occasion to discuss future opportunities and concrete actions for EU Delegations to partner up with Fair Trade producer platforms in Asia, Africa, Caribbean, Latin America and the Pacific. Other than EU Ambassadors, the event also included interventions by the Chair of the European Parliament Development Committee and of the Fair Trade Working Group (MEP Linda McAvan) as well as from the European Commission, and the Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO).
As a follow-up to this event, the FTAO will follow-up individually with each participating EU Ambassador to create the opportunities for them to meet up with Fair Trade producer platforms and discuss possible ways to cooperate in support of Fair Trade in their respective countries.