Casey Beckner cbeckner@email.unc.edu
Suzanne Bunnell bunnell@email.unc.edu
Merrybelle Guo guo1@email.unc.edu
Lily Mchugh mchu@email.unc.edu
Matthew Mcnichol mmcnich@email.unc.edu
Charmaine Washington charm09@email.unc.edu
Colleen Whitney cwhitney@email.unc.edu
Pezhmon Zaiim zaiim@email.unc.edu
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Hi guys,
Below is a list of some Chapel Hill grocery stores that I found online.
**Here is the link to the website: http://local.triangle411.com/Chapel+Hill/Grocery+Stores.zq.html
I guess we can get together in class and decide how we want to divide the stores up between us and can also choose which stores we want to target...
Foster's Market
919-967-3663
750 Airport Rd
Food Lion
919-967-2613
1720 N Fordham Blvd
Food Lion
919-929-0458
1129 Weaver Dairy Rd
Harris Teeter
919-933-5700
2110 S Estes Dr
Harris Teeter
919-968-0110
1800 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
Whole Foods Market
919-968-1983
81 South Elliott Rd
--Charmaine Washington
Scanning your terrific work, I saw a comment on going to near-by cities. You are very ambitious!! We can only tackle Chapel Hill and Carrboro, and take advantage of free buses.
So I was thinking that maybe before we actually go to these stores asking them to exercise more fair trade practices, (1)do you all think we need to go to these stores and actually assess the situations? I know I haven't been to some of these stores, so I don't know how much fair trade is already in place. Also (2)for stores like Harris Teeter and Food Lion, should we look more towards targeting the actual corporations because the reality is that a single Harris Teeter or Food Lion can't change its policy on fair trade? What do you guys think?
You're probably right, Casey. I don't think individual Food Lions or Harris Teeters will able to change their policies without backing from their corporations. Perhaps we, as human rights advocates, can talk with the managers/employees of each individual location and encourage them talk with the cooperation in addition to the letters/calls/emails to the corporations from us. The more people that talk to the corporations, the more they likely they will be willing to change their policies regarding fair trade.
On a slightly different note, what would you all think about targeting a few products or companies at a time? It would take some research to find out what companies (like Kellogg’s, Coca-Cola, etc) have the worst labor conditions for their workers. This information would provide a more tangible way for the stores to switch to fair trade. Additionally, local managers may be able to take select items off their shelf. One less item is better than none...
Thoughts anyone?
Additionally, here is a list of grocery stores in Chapel Hill and Carrboro in addition to the ones Charmaine listed above. They can all be found on Google Maps if you are unsure of their locations.
Food Lion Stores Inc: Store No 1608
50000 Governors Dr, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 932-1467
Food Lion Stores Inc: Store Number 1544
104 NC Highway 54 # A, Carrboro, NC
(919) 932-1589
Food Lion Stores Inc: Store No 142
600 Jones Ferry Rd, Carrboro, NC
(919) 942-0916
Harris Teeter- Carr Mill Mall
310 N Greensboro St, Carrboro, NC
(919) 942-8564
Harris Teeter Inc
88 Chatham Downs, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 960-0275
Harris Teeter-Meadowmont
116 W Barbee Chapel Rd, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 929-0470 or (919) 932-5020
Harris Teeter
2823 Butler Road, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 968-4568
Lowe's Foods
11312 US Highway 15 501 N, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 969-1464
Mike's Corner Grocery
4908 Nc Highway 54 W, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 967-7552
A Southern Season
University Mall, 201 S Estes Drive, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 929-7133
Trader Joe's
1800 E Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 918-7871
Weaver Street Market
716 Market St, Chapel Hill, NC
(919) 929-2009
Colleen, I think it is a great idea to target specific products. There is no way we can go into stores and expect them to make sure all of their products are Fair Trade certified. The list of grocery stores looks great as well. When are we going to decide who is going where?
hey guys, sorry it too me so long to post this.
i went to trader joe's and they didnt have a list of fair trade items they stock. Then the manager told me that most of the free trade products they have are their trader joe brand of coffee. I wrote down the types of free coffee then walked around the store trying to locate other fair trade items which i could not find. I even checked the chocolates which none said they were fair trade. here is a list of the fair trade coffee they had.
- Peruvian cafe Femenino
- Organic Guatemalan Coffee
- Organic Sumatra
- Organic French Roast
- Cafe Pajaro
- Organic Bolivian Blend
- Organic five country espresso blend
- organic Nicaraguan coffee
- organic ethiopian (shade grown)
- D'Aquino organic espresso
- and one type of tea - organic Green Tea
thats all the fair trade items i saw at trader joes. i am going to write the them am email seeing if i can get a full list. Ill keep you guys posted.
after doing some more search on the internet i have found that trader joe's does have some fair trade chocolate. They carry chocolate truffles that are fair trade. here is the link to the article that i have found.
http://www.typetive.com/candyblog/item/trader_joes_fair_trade_chocolate_truffles/
here is a link about traders joes coffee. they couldnt provide me with a list of their most profitable fair trade items but it says the french roast is their number one seller and it is a fair trade items so i guess you could use that. here is a link about all their coffee.
http://traderjoes.com/Attachments/coffee_brochure.pdf
I am a little disappointed that a store like trader joes that takes the time and effort to supply fair trade items does not invest much time into education customers about what fiar trade is or providing information upon request about their fair trade items. i did recieve an email back from corporate saying that they do not have a list of all their fair trade items which i found a little disappointing. i will continue to do research on the internet and try to find out more if i can. hope this helps you guys with your letters
So how are the letters coming along?
When I visited Whole Foods last weekend, I learned that they have created their own line of products that, though they're not Fair Trade certified, uphold all of the Fair Trade standards. They did carry Fair Trade certified coffee and chocolate in addition to their "Whole Trade" products. Here's the link to the "Whole Trade" website:
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/whole-trade.php
They support the "Whole Planet Foundation," which provides microcredits in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. It reminds me of the Grameen Bank that we talked about in class. Here's the link to the "Whole Planet Foundation":
http://www.wholeplanetfoundation.com/
While prepping to draft a new letter, Ive found that fair trade products are available at Harris Teeter, Sam's Club and even by order with Food Lion. On major Fair Trade websites, Harris Teeter is even listed as a location where Fair Trade products may be purchased.
Chapel Hill-Carrboro has particularly high availability when it comes to Fair Trade goods. Should we alter our approach yet again? As most of the Fair Trade products are coffee, chocolate or wine, perhaps what we could do is encourage more options in stores that only offer a couple. Maybe we could encourage new partnerships in Fair Trade tea etc. I think Colleen mentioned this idea: maybe we could ask them to increase their visibility of these products.
Tonight, we are going to need to discuss what exactly we are asking these grocery stores to do.
Please visit this website!!
http://www.fairtraderesource.org/change-the-world/advocate-for-fair-trade/
Click on the link that reads, "Send a letter to "World's Finest Chocolate." It has an eloquent example of what we could be to the grocery stores.
If you have the time, I would also encourage you to explore the rest of the "http://www.fairtraderesource.org/" website. They have provided a lot of information to empower us as consumers to demand Fair Trade.
the letter:
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing to you as a part of a local grassroots movement to make Chapel Hill and Carrboro, NC official Human Rights Cities. An important aspect of this movement is ensuring Fair Trade items are available at local businesses. Although the connection between Fair Trade goods and human rights may not first be apparent, the correlation is indeed very relevant. By guaranteeing local farmers and producers receive a decent and fair amount of the earnings from their labors, they are also guaranteed the basic rights that you and I take for granted, including access to and ability to acquire food, water and shelter for themselves and their families.
We commend you for already including a number of Fair Trade items in your aisles; however, the lack of visibility these items receive is extremely disappointing. Of course we would like to encourage the inclusion of larger numbers of Fair Trade goods but we do not presume to understand the economics of your business. We are simply encouraging your store to aid the customer in their awareness of your Fair Trade goods. This would be beneficial to your store as increasing the visibility will likely also increase the sales of these goods. Perhaps this success will eventually prompt the addition of even more Fair Trade items in your stores.
There are many ways of going about doing this from creating displays, attaching signs, or even rearranging the placement of these products. Your organic produce displays seem to be particularly effective and similar action could be taken with Fair Trade goods.
Chapel Hill and Carrboro already have vast access to Fair Trade goods which among other things, shows that the demand for these socially conscious items is there. As we as a population move to embrace issues of wider impact, our thinking extends beyond our own livelihoods. We are no longer isolated individuals, but we are very much connected to those whom we will never meet. Your efforts of emphasizing organic and locally grown foods and carrying cloth bags is praiseworthy, however, it can not stop there. As frequent customers, we urge you to make this change immediately, if not for social justice, then as a shrewd business move to meet the demands of the community you are established in.
Sincerely,
Merrybelle Guo
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