I emplore you not to buy any "FAIRTRADE" items as it is morally wrong and I'll explain why;
Fair trade is stamping out child labour accross the globe...... FACT!
This can only be a negative thing for the following reasons;
1. If the kids want to work and earn an honest wage, then let them. I can't believe we are actually getting in the way of kids wanting to do a hard day's work.
Look at this country, it's on it's arse. We have developed into an idle set of layabouts, none more so than the current generation of youth. This Country would be better place if our kids adopted the same go get em attitude as those hard workers in the sweat shops of the Far East.
2. We are denying the young generation of developing Countries the joy of early retirement. They can retire at 35, How many westerners can say that? I'd give my right arm to be drawing my pension in 4 years time.
Why go to school and learn a pile of pointless shite, when their time could be better spent at work, paying into a pension scheme.
3. The rate of nuisance youth and anti social type crime will rocket in these areas, if the kids weren't busy working they'd be out smashing bus stops, like they do in South Yorkshire.
The only plus point I can see for stopping child labour abroad, is that it might cause a labour vacuum and encourage all the "skilled" immigants (you know who you are, yeah you lot at the scotch egg factory down the road)that are flooding into this country, to piss off elsewhere and make their fortunes. Thus relieving some of the strain on the NHS etc....
In summary if kids want to work, let them. Lets not shatter their dreams of job security and early retirement, just so that we can pat ourselves on the back for buying FAIRTRADE.
Just buy non GM or CORNFED and feel warm inside about that instead.