Category: News

“Gold standard fair trade, Value added at source”

“It’s … what we would call a “Value added at source” company, which is actually 1 step more advanced than Fairtrade, because of course with Fairtrade what usually happens is that the farmer is paid a good price and social premium for the commodity eg cocoa and then it gets shipped to another country for processing and packaging, into eg chocolate, who then also takes a slice of the profit. But what Giovanni has created means that the processing and packaging and therefore all the profits stay within Colombia, and employ more local people. So that’s what a lot of us Fairtrade enthusiasts deem to be the Gold standard, and call Value added at source. .. and brilliant that it also comes under the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) logo too.”
– Gina Cox, Wonderful Earth, who with her local team organised the Leigh-on-Sea event of the Fruition Tour.
(For Frutos de los Andes WFTO Membership, see link – The logo will be applied for, for the next import)

Celebrating the Harvest

How will you be celebrating Harvest Festival this year?

You’re invited to enjoy a Colombian Fruit Compote, with mango, banana, pineapple & uchuva, plumped up with a little hot water.

This dessert takes 5 mins to prepare, then leave for a couple of hours or overnight.

Serve hot or cold. Exquiste with a generous dollop of Pitaya Greek Yoghurt!

Virtual Banana Flight

Bananas don’t grow on trees!!!

They actually grow on the world’s largest herbaceous plants and are related to orchids, palms, and lilies.

Technically bananas are berries & grow from bulbs.

This organic banana farm is run by Orlando, his family and his team.

The fruits of Colombia are a treasure…

In July, the BBC produced a must-see 5 min video, which gives a great insight into Colombia’s passion for exotic fruits:

Watch here: The secret behind Colombia’s blender craze

“The fruits of Colombia are a treasure…… and I think there are still many treasures to discover” – Antonella Ariza, Colombian cuisine expert & chef.

“Our country has many regions cut off and un-studied for decades, but recently, with the signing of the peace deal, those areas have been reopened for research and exploration and there new species continue to appear and be discovered” – Gian Paolo Daguer – “Lord of the Fruits”

Virtual Mango Flight

This is the most spectacular view on our Mango Virtual Flight MG1406 on 14th June.

Flying over the mountains to the Mango farm.

We joined part of the Fruandes team at one of the 2 mango harvests per year.

It was great to see around the farm and meet the team.

Especially the Venezuelan couple who have found work and a home there ~ inspiring!