Good News From Wagagai Flower Producers
No matter how you say it, this beloved plant embodies the spirit of the Christmas season. And this holiday decoration can make a world of difference.
Uganda-based flower farm Wagagai is leading the way for a brighter future, using Fairtrade poinsettias to support living wages for farm workers.
Ugandan flower plantation Wagagai have been supplying Aldi in Ireland since 2016 with Fairtrade certified poinsettias. They come into Ireland as small plants and are grown by O’Connor Nurseries in Wexford. Those sales on Fairtrade terms allow workers to benefit from an extra premium paid to a separate premium fund. A premium committee that includes workers then decides on which projects to spend this extra income. This year, the Wagagai Fairtrade premium committee bought a sickle cell testing machine as one of their premium projects.
A big source percentage was the extra payment from Fairtrade Ireland’s special deal with Wagagai, which redirects 60% of its licence fee on Aldi Poinsettias sales to the Wagagai premium fund, in addition to the usual Fairtrade premium.
Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder, very common disease in their area, that affects the shape of red blood cells making them sickle-shape hence the name. Patients with the disease have been suffering silently because it was very costly to diagnose the disease.
The machine will help them detect people with the disease and seek treatment in time.
In the pictures
The premium committee from Wagagai
Showing the Sickle Cell Testing Machine
