When did the man enter the field of fair trade?

W: How did you become involved in fair trade?
M: My degree was in ecology and I was a founder member of Friends of the Earth in Norwich. While I was an education worker at the Natural History Museum, London, a friend introduced me to fair trade and I started off as a sales agent for Traidcraft. Fair trade appealed because it combines the environmental and development movements.
W: What do you think are the most important next steps in fair trade?
M: We need to find out more about the consumers who should be buying fair trade products but aren’t—discover what gets in the way. Fair trade in the UK is doing really well at the moment. Strong companies like Twin and Equal Exchange have become actively involved in the mainstream, and about half a million people regularly buy fair trade goods. But some people still hesitate because they are unsure of quality. Also we want to broaden the range of fair trade products available.
W: What has been the highlight of your career in fair trade?
M: There is one moment that sticks in my mind. When I first joined the Fairtrade Foundation I visited a tea estate in India to talk to local people and workers. I came away thinking I had raised too many expectations, and felt very "foreign" to them. However, when I returned there two years later I emerged from the plantation gate to find a queue of local people who wanted to talk to me about other changes they hoped for. Two things about this were important. They saw that fair trade existed to improve their situation. And it showed a level of trust—they could come to me with complaints knowing it wouldn’t be counted against them.