A fair trade for all

I am personally juggling diary dates as it is also the beginning of a busy time of year in the gardening world. Due to the long periods of wet, snow and ice this winter so much ground work has had to be delayed it will now be a rush to get it all done.

The cold weather is certainly still with us overnight and has been delaying any planting each morning until the sun has warmed up the ground.

It has also meant that the gritting lorries have been out again adding further to the overall cost to the taxpayer for keeping our roads safe. I am pleased to hear that there is to be a review by East Sussex County Council on gritting and snow clearing procedures. It is possible that the same weather conditions could occur again next year and steps need to be taken to avoid the disruption to schools, hospitals and the working life which occurred on too many days this year.

I have been pleased to support Fairtrade fortnight. I went to a very interesting talk on this subject at St Richards School and to support the Bexhill group who were actively campaigning in Western Road. The Fairtrade mark can now be found on over 4,500 products and has now been extended to goods other than just food.

The Fairtrade organisation exists to promote, as it says, fair trade. Currently this gives assistance to farmers in developing countries and is a sort of self help system. It ensures that local farmers make a living at a level which enables them to build schools and improve their lot generally while still dealing on the open market ensuring a better future.

I do wonder whether this is a model which could be used to support farming in this country before we lose it completely and become too reliant on imported food and other goods.

It can be argued that some of the blame for this country's economic woes can be put on the fact that we have relied too heavily on banking and related services rather farming and associated manufacturing industries.