NUS Article: Hope in a Conflict Zone: The Zaytoun Story…
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009Zaytoun was recently featured in the NUS Magazine ‘Spotlight’. To read the full article click here
Triodos Bank: Where Transparency is the Best Policy
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009Zaytoun is among the many ethical projects that benefit from a Triodos Bank loan to support its growth. Now Triodos is the first bank allowing anyone to see all the loans it is making. To read more click here
FT Foundations Director Says Bananas & Palestinian Olive Oil Her Favourite FT Products
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009With the love of Palestinian Olive Oil growing in the UK, it seems it’s quickly becoming everyone’s ‘favourite’ product. The Executive Director of Fairtrade Foundation, Harriet Lamb recently said Palestinian Olive Oil is one of her two favourite favourite Fairtrade products of the last 15 years. Read more here
October/November 2009 Newsletter
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009Hello to all Zaytoun customers and supporters,
In this newsletter…
Olive Harvest 2009
Medjoul dates – order in advance
New member of staff and Zaytoun Office
Volunteers Needed
Events
Where to Purchase Zaytoun Products
Olive Harvest 2009
The olive harvest this year in Palestine has a very low yield as we mentioned in last months newsletter. Feedback from the farmers is that they are keen to maintain their sales abroad as this market is needed in the longer term. However our suppliers are feeding back that the price of the oil is currently soaring due to the shortages; we will let you know of new harvest prices in the next newsletter. Zaytoun have been keen to work on developing a range of Palestinian products in order to provide sustainability for our initiative and also for the farmer coops we work with; in light of the poor olive harvest we will be working especially hard to promote and develop other products alongside the oil over the coming year.
There have been a few articles published in the last few weeks discussing the low yield and also the ongoing problems which farmers are facing from the residents of the illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
This article in the Washington Post is about our primary partner in Palestine, Canaan Fair Trade, it talks about their work, the context they are working in and also the effect that climatic conditions have had on their harvest this year.
The West Bank’s gold: A Palestinian cooperative looks to trade olive oil for foreign cash
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/19/AR2009101903480.html
The Economist writes of the ongoing problems Palestinian farmers face from settler violence
Not much of an olive branch: The plight of rural Palestinians on the West Bank is as grim as ever
www.economist.com/world/middleeast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14660454&fsrc=rss
This Week in Palestine reports on some of the aspects we love about the olive harvest; can we tempt you to join us next year?
www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=2927&ed=175&edid=175
October has seen a Zaytoun tour group, the picking team and a couple of our director’s over in the West Bank and in November we have our second tour group visiting. Stories and images from their trips will be put up on our facebook group (see link at bottom of newsletter to join) soon and included in the next newsletter.
Medjoul dates – regional distributor and bulk buyers’ payments needed in advance
Zaytoun’s delicious medjoul dates are currently out of stock and we need your help to bring in our next shipment. The medjoul dates are sourced from the Palm Farmers Cooperative who work with the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees. The dates are grown in the Jordan Valley and the cooperative is unique in its work to export medjoul dates. Other medjoul dates exported from this area come from Israel’s illegal settlements which have stolen huge tracts of land in this fertile area. Please do check labelling of medjoul dates found in UK supermarkets as much of this product comes from the illegal settlements.
The news from the Palm Farmers Cooperative is positive and they have brought in a good harvest of high quality dates during September. This crop is made available to buyers at this time year only so Zaytoun is now securing our date supply for the coming year. In line with fair trade practice we need to pay the farmers at the time of order which is where we need your help; the bridging of funds between purchase and sale is hard for a small company such as Zaytoun. If you are in a position to pay for your date order in advance it would be a great help for us. More information on the dates can be found on this link www.zaytoun.org/files/2009/03/dates.pdf
Please contact us at order@zaytoun.org for more details and our current price list and order form. Discount available for advance payment on bulk orders of dates.
New member of staff and Zaytoun Office
We are now in our new office space, please note the address below for any correspondence, and are delighted to have Manal Ramadan on board. Manal is our main contact is the office and will be the primary contact for any customer orders.
Volunteers needed
Zaytoun has an ongoing need for help running stalls and sampling products in local shops. If you are interested please get in touch via contact@zaytoun.org
Events
First Saturday of every month 10am – 4pm, outside St John’s Church on Bethnal Green, 200 Cambridge Heath Road, London E2 9PA, nearest tube Bethnal Green. Run by London Palestinian Rights Group
28th -29th November Hope For The Holy Land: Celebrating Palestinian Christianity. Holy Apostles Hall (nr Victoria Station, London) www.h4hl.org
4th - 6th December
The Christmas Eco Fair at the Royal Geographical Society London
www.theecofair.co.uk
4th - 6th December
The Taste of Christmas Show, Excel London
www.tasteofchristmas.com/2009
Zaytoun is always looking for volunteers for stalls so if you would like to help at any of the events above please contact manal@zaytoun.org
For a calendar of events where fairly traded Palestinian crafts from Hadeel will be on sale, and often Zaytoun products too, please see the link on Hadeel’s website: www.hadeel.org/page.html?id=11&zenid=i217so4m21m7f3kup8ct5mj410
THE FRIENDS OF WADI FUQEEN have several stalls coming up nearer Christmas that supporters may wish to come to. We will be selling Fairtrade Palestinian handicrafts and foodstuffs and trying to raise awareness of the Palestinian plight. Why not come and buy your Christmas gifts? Stocking-fillers from Bethlehem prove very popular at Christmas time. www.wadifuqeenfriends.com
1) Coffee morning: 10am to 12noon at the Old Town Hall, Market Square,
Newbury, on Saturday, 14 November 2009. All welcome. We also expect to have a small display/exhibition on the history of Palestinian embroidery. The Mayor will attend so it would be nice if we could show we have a good few supporters behind us. Please do consider joining us. Helpers may meet together for lunch afterwards.
2) Fairtrade Xmas stall at Newbury Library, the Wharf, Newbury, from 10am to 4pm on Saturday, 28 November 2009.
3) Fairtrade Xmas stall at Church House, Caversham, Reading, (next to Waitrose) on 12 December from 11am to 4pm.
Where to Purchase Zaytoun Products
Zaytoun is delighted that we now have nationwide coverage for our range of Palestinian products.
The products can be obtained through a number of outlets:
Regional distributors remain the back bone of Zaytoun, both in terms of distributing products and also in terms of spreading the message of issues faced by Palestinian farmers. To find your nearest distributors please see: www.zaytoun.org/distribution/regional-distribution
Online and retail distribution for the products has grown really well this year and this link lists online and retail outlets for the products www.zaytoun.org/distribution/retail
Wholesale all Zaytoun’s products are now available through wholesalers so if you don’t see products in your local retailer please let them know they are available through the following www.zaytoun.org/distribution/wholesale
Please note these lists are regularly updated with new and changing outlets so please do check back and let us know if you would like to add details to this list by emailing contact@zaytoun.org
Thanks for your ongoing support,
ZAYTOUN CIC - fairly traded produce from Palestine
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