Procurement Case Study – Carmarthenshire County Council
There has been a Fairtrade County campaign in Carmarthenshire since 2006. Since its launch there have been significant achievements, which have resulted in Carmarthenshire achieving Fairtrade county status in June of this year (2009).
Procurement is a key driver for promoting sustainability and fair-trade, and as part of its sustainable procurement policy the council have made a commitment to support Fairtrade in a number of ways. The council now source Fairtrade fruit juice (where possible) for the local schools (primary and secondary) in the area. This will also support the many schools in Carmarthenshire who are working to become recognised as a ‘Fairtrade School’.
The catering service has recently secured a supply of Fairtrade bananas for the next 40 weeks. This means that in addition to schools, residents will be able to buy Fairtrade bananas in council canteens, swimming pools, sports clubs etc across the county, which in turn will also help to raise awareness about Fairtrade. Interestingly this switch has not come at an increased cost to the council. This demonstrates that buying ethically sourced products does not necessarily mean an increased cost.
The Procurement team are piloting the Sustainable Risk Assessment, as recommended by Value Wales[1], which includes criteria on a number of sustainability issues to ensure that these are incorporated into all procurement decisions at the earliest opportunity. Using the SRA on the fruit and vegetable contract helped to secure a supply of Fairtrade bananas. The authority has also recently achieved a platinum award for the Corporate Health Standard[2] awarded by the Welsh Assembly Government. The case-study focussed on the Sustainable Food Procurement strategy, which included Fair Trade food.
Internally, the council has a number of Green Teams who work to promote green issues, and support Fairtrade activities. The council also nominates a staff representative to attend Fairtrade county meetings and helps coordinate the work of the group.
In terms of working with partners, back in 2007 the Carmarthenshire Local Service Board (a partnership of local public sector organisations in Carmarthenshire which includes the council, health trust, police and community sector) signed a pledge to “Make Carmarthenshire a Sustainable County”. This includes a commitment to use Fairtrade products and support the Fairtrade county campaign.
The council identified that the biggest challenges are ensuring that the adopted policies are complied with, and trying to ensure that where individuals or separate offices have their own responsibility for buying things (e.g. tea and coffee), that they are aware of the council’s commitment to Fairtrade and support it by choosing Fairtrade. They recognise that there is an ongoing job to be done to increase awareness and support for Fairtrade both in the council offices and within the Carmarthenshire community.
However due to the council’s ongoing commitment to sustainability, significant achievements have been made to date in relation to procurement and ethical issues, within the authority and with schools, partners and the wider community. Hopefully this will mean that Carmarthenshire County Council can continue this good work and further increase their commitment to Fairtrade and the wider sustainability agenda.
[1] www.buyforwales.co.uk: Value Wales website
[2] http://wales.gov.uk/topics/health/improvement/work/corporate/?skip=1&lang=en WAG Corporate Health Standard website