St Andrews awarded new Fairtrade status

The University of St Andrews is one of the first in the country to be awarded the new Fairtrade University two-stars status.

St Andrews is one of 12 institutions accredited this year under the new standards of the revised award in conjunction with the Fairtrade Foundation and National Union of Students (NUS).

Representatives from the University and the Students’ Association have been working through new criteria which are more far reaching than the previous award and provide a wider range of ways for the institution to engage with Fairtrade and ethical consumption.

Joanna Milis, Education Campaigns Manager from the Fairtrade Foundation, said: “Research conducted by our partners NUS tells us that 90% of students say they want to buy more products that don’t harm the people that produce them and 84% say they trust the Fairtrade Mark the most of all product marks.

“There is a huge appetite amongst students to understand the impact the products they buy are having on the people and the planet along the supply chain, and to buy ethically sourced products.”

St Andrews student and Fairtrade Auditor Ella Whitaker said: “It was really promising to see how St Andrews has integrated their Fairtrade work with other sustainability initiatives.

“Highlighting the interconnected nature of concepts allows students, members of staff and the St Andrews community to better understand the positive change stimulated by Fairtrade and gain a broader understanding of sustainability in practice.”