Kingston University London

Fairtrade at Kingston

 

Avenance work in partnership with Kingston University to provide restaurant and event catering on the four main campuses.

 

TARGET: We aim to keep our Fairtrade accreditation year on year and to continue working with Avenance and the Student Union to promote Fairtrade and sustainable catering and to widen the range of products available   Note: The University first achieved the Fairtrade status in 2006

 

The team from Avenance has spent the last two years working towards a definite pattern of trading with as much natural, healthy food and drink from well sourced suppliers. Angela Wyer, General Manager explained "The response to our Fairtrade coffee offer has been tremendous. All our fresh bean coffee is now Fairtrade - some 70 KILOS per week is sold during term time. We also improved the signage to raise awareness of how the University are supporting this cause through buying quality coffee."

Angela went onto explain that Fairtrade fruit juices in three flavours and a range of biscuits, cookies and snacks with the Fairtrade logo have also been introduced. "The next plan is to source bananas on a regular basis - the supply is currently a bit sporadic."

As a fresh food company, the majority of Avenance's dishes are cooked from scratch with fresh ingredients. There is a team of chefs working in the background, and another front of house team serving up the goodies. Of the 70 staff from 20 nationalities, half are casual, of these half are Kingston students!

 

Current products on sale include:
University Restaurants/ Foodstores	Students Union shop
Greenleaf Orange juice	Fair-trade flapjacks
Cranberry and Apple juice	Geobars
Apple juice	Fairbreak
Geo bars x 3 flavours	Fair-trade chocolate
Divine Bars x white and milk choc	Ginger cookies
Traidcraft brazil nut cookies	Fair-trade Banana and Honey bar
Choc chip cookies	Fair-trade Mango and Brazil Bar
All fresh bean to cup coffee	Cafedirect
Sugar sticks brown & white in 3 outlets out of 7	Teadirect

 

Membership:

 

• Angela Wyer, General Manager, Avenance
  
• Nicola Corrigan, Sustainability Facilitator
  
• Andrew Duff, Purchasing Manager
  
• Nicola Skevington, KUSU management representative
  
• Hannnah Smith, Environment & Ethical Officer, KUSU
  
• Jia Tang, Sustainability Team Member, KU

 

 

Did you know... that all tea and coffee served in campus restaurants is fairly traded? Over 4,000 cups a week in fact!

 

"I want to support shops that sell ethical and Fairtrade products so I can make sure my hard earned cash is helping the environment and the people that made my stuff."

 

Yes items can be a bit more than their conventional counterparts but you are paying for a new way of producing goods that considers the environment and the people that made them.
However can you cut back in other areas to help afford this new way of life? So buy less and be happy!