In 2009 the milk production sparked a series of protests in Europe. The dairy farmers felt aggrieved and showed their frustration by catching the media and the population’s attention about the unjust situation of which they are the victims. In Belgium, on September 16, 2009, more than three-hundred tractors drove onto à field in Ciney and spilled three million liters of milk on the ground. According to Erwin Schöpges, who was at the time the president of the Milk Producer Interest Group (MIG), the quantity of milk poured onto the field corresponded to one day’s work of the dairy production in Wallonia.

Thus, the beginning of the 2000’s marked a revolution and turned the attention towards the fragile situation that the farmers and the producers in the Northern Hemisphere face everyday. Various initiatives aim to assure these producers a correct salary and support the new trend : buying local.

Even now, the income share of a Walloon farmer comes back to only 5-30% of the sale price depending on the product. In order to draw attention to this situation, the Producers’ College put in place an initiative that encourages the producer to fix a just price with the first buyer. This includes productions costs and work compensation. Thanks to the “Prix Juste Producteur” (Right Producer Price), farmers and consumers are finally brought together to solve the problem of a obtaining a fair price for the producers. More information here

Seasonal Fruit and Vegetables

An increasing amount of consumers are buying more seasonal products and in doing this they support the local producers as well. This type of consumption strengthens the local economy and is even compatible with Fairtrade Northern/Southern Hemisphere. In effect, different lines of products and craft can’t be grown or practiced in our régions such as cocoa beans, coffee and different specialized handicrafts. Thus fair trade North/ South and fair trade North/North work well together and are not threats to each other’s businesses. Current events have pushed for the advancements to create a synergy between these two different production models.

Our members practicing a local fair trade

Agricovert

Agricovert is an ecological agricultural cooperative that brings together various producers from the region with the main goal of selling their local products at a fair and viable price. This social project prioritizes à respect for human rights as well as their natural and social environnement.

Altérez-vous

Altérez-Vous is a citizen café, a convivial exchange space that offers local, organic and fair trade products as part of a sustainable project. Altérez-vous is also a non-profit association that organizes activities like concerts, environmentally friendly workshops, or conversation tables ! Find out more here

Coopesem

Created in 2017, CoopESEM is a citizen cooperative bringing together producers and consumers of the Entre-Sambre-et-Meuse who want to think globally and act locally. More information here

Faircoop

Founded en 2009 by Erwin Schöpges, who’s currently the president of the European Milk Board, the cooperative brings together some 500 livestock farmers and offers fairtrade dairy products. These products are sold under the Fairbel label. Find out more

The Less Brewery

Founded in 2011, la Brasserie de la Lesse became a cooperative with a social purpose where they brew artisanal beer, create meaningful projects : raw, local and environmentally friendly materials, à brasserie that consumes small amounts of energy and supports local fair trade. More information here

Ethiquable

Since 2011, la coopérative ETHIQUABLE has been a key participant in setting the Fairtrade North/North trend based on farmers’ rights at WCARRD.

Ethiquable has also developped à line of organic products with the mark TERRA ETICA with Belgian, French, Portugese, Italian and Greek producers. To find out more click here.