The Fire and Brimstone Iceland 2012 Expedition successfully completed the first unsupported crossing of Iceland, ably fuelled by Geobars!

The team had many days of desperate walking, when the thought of collapsing into their sleeping bags before munching a Geobar and then falling asleep was one of the only things keeping them going.

On the trip, the team crossed the youngest mountain in the world formed by a volcanic eruption two years ago. They toasted marshmallows over lava, bathed in hot springs surrounded by snow, battled through sandstorms, suffocating volcanic fumes, an enormous desert of black ash, they also tackled lots of desperate freezing cold river fords. On average the team walked 30km a day, but on their biggest day they completed over 50 miles. It never got fully dark as it’s so far north, so they frequently walked until 2 or 3 in the morning! When they got towards the north, they were attacked for several days by birds which live by the coast, leading to surprising injuries such as numerous cuts on their heads from the repeated dive bombing!

We would just like to say a big well done to the Fire and Brimstone Iceland 2012 Expedition team, Calum Nicoll, Calum McLellan, Struan Chisholm, Sam Newmark,
Sandy Fowler and Ben King.

For the first time, Geobar is supporting Red Nose Day and Comic Relief. Geobar packs on sale in February and March will carry a lovely red and white sticker indicating that 5p from the sale of that box will be donated to Comic Relief.

 It’s 25 years since Red Nose Day first burst onto our screens and into our hearts. Since then, you, the great British public, have been donning Red Noses and pulling out all the stops to do something funny for money. Whether it’s at work, school or home, the cash you raise changes lives in the UK and across Africa.

 So, join the Fun Raisers today and change lives at rednoseday.com

 Red Nose Day is an initiative of Comic Relief, registered charity 326568 (England/Wales); SC039730 (Scotland)

At Traidcraft, we like campaigning to make the world a fairer place and we’re nearly there with our latest campaign! It’s been a long campaign, but we’re now close to having a watchdog that will hold supermarkets to account for how they treat their suppliers in the UK and overseas. We need one last push to make sure the supermarkets watchdog has the power it needs to be effective: the power to fine supermarkets that break the rules from day one.

 Help us to change the world one bite at a time, and join us in this last push.

Take action.

Apicoop visiting the Geobar factory

Our friends Chino and Claudio from Apicoop co-operative in Chile visited Traidcraft HQ last week to catch up on honey, blueberries and 20 years working with us.

Apicoop provide us with two vital ingredients that go into our yummy Geobars – honey and blueberries.

Over the last 20 years thanks to our fair trade partnership and our Geobar munching friends, in addition to above average pay our friends at Apicoop also have …

•  Access to healthcare
• Low interest loans schemes
• A pension fund
• Invested in a blueberry field (to reduce reliance on honey)
• Provided transport to the town
• Kitchen facilities (now they can have a hot meal and a cold drink!)
• Childcare
• Invested in technology (‘Big Joe’ and ‘Comrade Zenen’ the tractors!)

Not to mention the opportunity to share resources and experience to develop their honey and blueberry producing capacity, but to Chino, Apicoop’s General Manager the greatest benefit has been “honey has been our way to give our kids a better chance for life. The golden key to a wider range of opportunities”. 

The Big Fair Bake will be taking place throughout the UK from from 24 September to 7 October – a perfect excuse to get your pinny on and bake for your friends and family. Simply bake with Fairtrade ingredients and have fun! For some ideas, try this link – or create your own recipe and let us know!

Geobar has received a lovely commemorative plaque from our friends at Sport Relief, featuring David Walliams and a Thames fish!

Thanks to you all for helping us to raise £20,000 by buying our special donation packs.

 

Peruvian photo journalist Carlos Garcia Granthon first tasted Geobar way back in 2008 when he travelled round Bolivia and Peru with Fiona from our Comms team. He not only took some great photos of producers that Traidcraft works with, but kept in touch, because he’s a big fair trade fan.

He emailed us recently and told us about the mega-cycling challenge he was setting himself – to cycle from Lima to Ticlio, which at more than 4,800 metres above sea level is the site of the second highest railway crossing in the world. So when he asked us if we’d like Geobar to help fuel his journey, we jumped at the chance and sent him some supplies.

He not only made it up there (and back again) but has the pictures to prove it!  You can read his story – and spot some Geobars – in his blog.

And in case you’re wondering, his favourite Geobar is chocolate!

Geobars are being handed out at the following events during June:

• Virgin Money Cyclone in the North East
• Wychwood Music Festival in Cheltenham
• Rat Race Adventure Series throughout the UK
• Norwood Bike Ride in Hertfordshire
• Speyside Challenge in Scotland

Geobar wishes lots of luck to all those participating in the challenge events!

Wake up and enjoy a Fairtrade breakfast! This year’s theme for World Fair Trade Day is holding a Fairtrade breakfast to raise awareness about making trade fair.

Celebrate by eating and drinking Fairtrade with friends and family over the weekend, or organise a Fairtrade breakfast at work next week. Click here for some more ideas.

And don’t forget that Geobars are perfect for breakfast  on-the-go!

Having fun at the Manchester Sport Relief Mile

Thanks to all of you for helping us to raise over £20,000 for Sport Relief by buying our special donation packs, playing our GeoHero game and through Twitrelief – helping to change the lives of people living incredibly tough lives in both the UK and in some of the world’s poorest countries.

And to all those who visited us at the Sport Relief miles – we hope you enjoyed your free Geobar! And if you like the picture on the left – click here to see more images of the fun that we had!