We spoke to Bruce Crowther, Executive Director of the The FIG Tree, in this week’s column. The Fig Tree’s chocolate will be available at Lancaster’s Harvest Market on Friday 1st September from 10:00- 17:00 in Lancaster Market Square.
“The FIG Tree is a social enterprise that promotes Fair Trade and supports the International Fair Trade Towns movement. We offer unique bean to bar chocolate making workshops for schools, community groups and the corporate sector using our link with the cocoa farming community of New Koforidua in Ghana – Africa’s first Fair Trade Town. We have a local heritage exhibition on Fair Trade, Lancaster’s slave trade and Quakers and offer heritage workshops on the same themes. We also produce and sell our own bean to bar chocolate.”
“As one of only two bean to bar chocolate makers in the North West there is nothing like our chocolate available in the supermarket. Only two people supervise the whole process from the seed going into the ground to plant the cocoa tree to the finished chocolate; the cocoa farmer in New Koforidua and Bruce, The FIG Tree Director. The chocolate is homemade from bean to bar in Garstang – the world’s first Fair Trade Town. By purchasing our chocolate you are not just providing profit for a corporate business but supporting a social enterprise and its work. The chocolate is also high quality using only the purest ingredients and nothing taken out to cut costs.”
“As the FIG Tree has no permanent base that it can call its own so has few opportunities to sell its chocolate directly to the public. We are grateful to LESS for providing the opportunity to put out our stall at the Lancaster markets four times each year. As well as a wide range of bean to bar chocolate we will also be selling Fair Trade gifts on the Harvest Market.”
“Outside of the harvest market, you can buy our chocolate from The Lancaster Priory Refectory cafe open Thursdays 10am – 1pm and Fridays and Saturdays 10.30am – 3.30pm.”
FIG Tree Bean to Bar chocolate is also available to buy at the following outlets:
- Single Step Wholefood Cooperative, 78A Penny St, Lancaster LA1 1XN.
- Leonardini Gelato Boutique, 22 King St, Lancaster LA1 1JY.
- Red Door Cafe & Gallery, Church Brow, Halton, Lancaster LA2 6LS.
- Ashton Hall Garden Centre. Ashton Rd, Lancaster LA2 0AJ
- Old Holly Farm, Cabus Nook Ln, Garstang, Preston PR3 1AA.
- The Barn, The Square, Scorton, Near Garstang, Preston PR3 1AU
- Hugo’s Ice Cream Parlour, A6 Lancaster Road, Forton PR3 0BL
- Sweets Mad, 16 High Street, Garstang PR3 1FA
- Garstang Country Market, Garstang Sports & Social Club High St/Lancaster Road, Garstang.
Call into The Priory where we have a small display and people to talk to when the cafe is open.
You can follow The FIG Tree on Twitter and Facebook for updates, and visit our website at http://fairtradecentre.org for more information.
