Tuesday 12 March 2013

Fairtrade Fortnight

I am glad that Fairtrade Fortnight is over.  I have not been home in an evening for about 3 weeks.  In Clackmannanshire, we had a visit from a Palestinian Fairtrade olive grower, a Guatemalan fairtrade coffee producer and we ran a Savour the Flavour, African cooking demonstration.
Taysir Arbasi from Palestine came to Alva on Friday 22nd when we showed the film The People and The Olive at No 140 in Alva.  A poor turnout, but we will show the film again at the MacRobert cinema on 18th June.

On Tuesday 5th March, Douglas Eloan Recinos Lópe, a Guatemalan coffee grower and Chairman of Fedecocagu, a co-operative of 19,354 small coffee growers, visited the Co-operative store in Alva, then on to the store in Bridge of Allan and finally on to Forth Valley College's Gallery restaurant for lunch.
In the evening of the Tuesday, I hosted a cookery demonstration at Resonate Arts House in Alloa.  Until 2.30 in the afternoon, it looked as if I was to be the one cooking as well as hosting it!
Fortunately, Stuart Hall of Forth Valley College pulled the kitchen staff out so that we could thank them after lunch.  He then asked if any of them would like to give a cookery demonstration that evening.  They all examined their shoes initially until a wonderful woman, Bernie Syme, volunteered and she press-ganged a fellow student, Neil Reid into helping her.
They were great!  Entertaining, efficient and educational , they produced the food which was appreciated greatly by the audience.  I am pleased that I did not have to demonstrate the cooking, although...
 Part of the food served were palmiers made from puff pastry and guava jam and shortbread biscuits made with macadamia nuts.  I made these on the Sunday before.  I have NEVER baked before!  One of the tables gave me 20 out of 10 for the biscuits.  Made my night!
I spoke to Alva Academy 1st & 2nd Year assembly and to Primaries 4, 5 and 6 at Craigbank Primary School.  I ran a Fairtrade themed Art competition for schoolchildren, wrote articles for newspapers and squeezed in lecturing and other activities as well

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