Five hundred workers on a Fairtrade banana farm in Ghana are reaping the rewards of a record harvest with a new bicycle for each of them.
The bicycles were paid for out of the Fairtrade premium, a sum paid by the consumer that is included in the price of all Fairtrade goods and goes directly to the farmer.
They will save many employees at Volta River Estates Ltd (VREL) a two hour journey to work each a day, giving them time to spend on their own plots of land to grow food to feed their families.
“This year is absolutely our best year so far,” said VREL’s Alex Yeboah-Afari. “The premium is generated by the quality and quantity of the product which is why we have much more then we were expecting. We have improved our production capacity and have had no major quality setbacks.”
VREL is part of AgroFair, the Fairtrade fruit company co-owned by its growers from Africa and Latin America. Its bananas are sold in Co-op stores in the UK.
Despite a hurricane wiping out 80 per cent of its plantations three years ago, the farm has fully recovered and has reinstated Fairtrade benefits for its workers including maternity pay, sick pay, compassionate and study leave - conditions rarely found of in the rest of Ghana. VREL wages are also 30 per cent higher that the national average.
The premium has helped pay for a number of renovations at the farm including a connection to the main water system and the presence of nurses and medical clinics on every plantation. It has also paid for a bus for workers.
Agnes Obuobia, a VREL field worker said: “[The bicycle] has taken away my transportation costs which I now give to my daughter for school. My daughters normally use the bicycle for exercise during their leisure time and it makes them cheerful,” she said. “The bike is helping me to keep a happy family.”
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