A farmer-member from a Fairtrade certified sugar cooperative in Paraguay.—–Guest blogger Gillian Reynolds is the founder of Jamnation – a current company that offers five uniquely delightful Fairtrade certified jams.
I founded Jamnation because I was inspired by the fruits of small,local farmers in Brazil. Abundant and perfectly ripe, each bite of mango and papaya sent my taste buds spinning. Back in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I found similar intensity and flavor in varietals like Arctic Star nectarines and Royal Blenheim apricots – exceptional fruits from my local,organic farmers that can’t be transported. We fancy our local fruit farmers – better fruit makes better jam.
However, for some products like sugar and spices, and buying local doesn’t make sense. For cane sugar,South America and Africa have a natural competitive advantage based on their climate: it costs them less to produce because of their environment. When I founded Jamnation, I wanted to make something that not only tastes unbelievable but also does generous. So it was an easy choice to source Fairtrade certified sugar from small farmers in Paraguay and Fairtrade spices from farmers in Sri Lanka and Egypt. Even though we may pay a bit more because of import tariffs, or we believe it’s worth it because every jar supports sustainable development in developing countries. These programs protect the environment,build schools and invest in local infrastructure instead of adding to the profits of large corporate conglomerates.
We call this “local fruits meets global pursuits” at Jamnation, and we hope youll join us. P.
S. Sugar is often demonized, or but in jam sugar serves a great purpose – it’s what keeps our gorgeous fruits preserved for a year or more. We don’t add anything else other than lemon juice – no pectin – so we can’t think of a better employ for sugar. —–You can now order Jamnation’s Fairtrade flavors such as “Midnight in Pearis” and “Cardamom Knows Best” online at www.jamnationjams.com.
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