The best ethical products

'Everyone who plants something will harvest something" says Carlos, a 65-year-old citrus farmer in Cuba. "That's the beauty of Fairtrade."

Since the Fairtrade mark was launched in 1997, the green tide has swept across the world, improving working conditions for farmers, labourers and textile workers everywhere from Nicaragua to Ghana. "Life for farmers is changing for the better now, and Fairtrade is an important part of that." says Carlos. As the UK welcomes Fairtrade Fortnight 2007, from Monday until 11 March, Carlos will be celebrating its success in the shade of the orange and lemon trees. "Life is hard, but we get food from the cooperative" he says, a smile spreading across his face. "Every once in a while, my wife and I are able to go out for dinner to a Chinese restaurant," he adds. "Two years ago that was a pipe dream."

While sales of ethical products increased by 40 per cent overall in the UK in 2006, Fairtrade Foundation executive director Harriet Lamb says the movement still has a long way to go in giving thousands more producers in developing countries the chance to gain recognition, a better future and the opportunity to compete in an increasingly competitive global market. " Fairtrade has demonstrated its potential to help producers improve their livelihoods, strengthen their businesses and benefit their communities, but compared with what is needed in the poorer countries of the world, we've really only begun to make a dent in the struggle against poverty and unfair trade," Lamb says.

With schools, communities and workplaces among those expecting to hold events, Fairtrade Fortnight 2007 looks set to be the biggest yet. When the mark was launched, the range of products was limited. Ten years on, high-street giants such as Topshop stock fairly traded brands, the Co-op has an award-winning range of ethically produced goods on its shelves, and last week saw five new ethical designers launch their wares at London Fashion Week.

The vast majority of products bearing the Fairtrade mark are either edible or wearable. Clothes must be made from 100 per cent organic cotton; food items must be produced under strict guidelines with limited use of chemicals, the presence of employment contracts and regular cooperative meetings.

While the Fairtrade mark is only a guarantee that at least 50 per cent of the product has been produced under ethical conditions, the word on the street is that 50 per cent is still pretty good going. Other than threads and foods, there are only four other products that bear the official Fairtrade mark: cut flowers, cotton, sports balls and houseplants. But thousands more otherwise ethically and fairly traded products are in the UK's shops.

Sitting pretty

BRANCH KNIT CHAIR

Branch, the up and coming online store, has made fair trade shopping sexy.

"Our products are manufactured and brought to market in a way that means you can shop without feeling guilty" says director Paul Donald. "When selecting items, we not only consider the sustainability of the product; we also look at the manufacturing process itself.

What kinds of dyes and paints are used? How much energy is expended in a product's manufacture? Are the workers who make these things paid a fair wage, and are they provided safe and healthy conditions in which to work?"

The answer at Branch is a resounding yes. This gorgeous Emiliano Godoy-designed knit chair is typical of the San-Fran store's socially conscious philosophy; it's fashioned from two key materials - Forestry Stewardship Council-certified oak and a ball of cotton rope - by the Pirwi people of Mexico, who receive regular visits from the store's directors. Branch's bamboo kitchen utensils, lazy chaises longues, recyclable toys and funky paper tables provide proof of a sweet, nascent relationship between high style and green ethics.

Where from: Branch Home (00 1 415 341 1824), www.branchhome.com

How much: £3,268.69

Sweet harmony

DIVINE CHOCOLATE

To celebrate 50 years of independence in Ghana, the maker of Divine Chocolate has splashed shimmering Ghanaian adinkra symbols over all of its packaging.

Since 1878, when cocoa first arrived in Ghana from Equatorial Guinea, the country has upheld a strong tradition of cocoa growing. When the Ghanaian cocoa market was liberalised in 1993, Divine - formerly the Day Chocolate Company - stepped in, improving working conditions in the West African nation.

Its chocolate is now certified Fairtrade, and its cocoa plantations benefit from workers' schools, healthcare centres and even credit unions.

Wear it well

RED 'ALCHEM1ST' OFF-THE-SHOULDER TOP

Alchem1st is a beautiful fairly traded brand from Bali. The deep-red top is dyed in traditional big barrels in a family-owned factory on the island.

The head designer is Balinese - which is unheard of in Indonesia; designers are usually flown in from the West. Alchem1st launches this spring/summer, and is available on the Fairtrade clothing website www.adili.com. The top costs £98 and is shown with black skinny Del Forte jeans in organic cotton (£134).

Under cover

GLOBAL WARMING KNICKERS

While Greenknickers' products don't carry the Fairtrade mark, itonly uses fair trade suppliers when sourcing materials from developing countries and relies on natural fabrics, environmentally friendly dyes and promotes cold washing.

"We minimise our knickermiles - miles our knickers travel - too," says the company's founder Sarah Lucy Smith.

These turquoise undies are "global warming knickers" - as they warm up the print changes - the land disappears to communicate the effect of global warming.

Where from: www.greenknickers.org

How much: £25 per pair

Screen idol

NIGEL'S ECO STORE

Nigel's a good bloke. His Eco Store, a comprehensive online source of all things ethical and fairly traded, doesn't disappoint. Just a few of the excellent products on offer include recycled paper Rock'n'Roll shelves (£189.99), a stunning twig bench (£1,150) and some brilliant solar-powered kids' toys.

Animal lovers will be pleased to know the biodegradable surround to this flat-screen PC monitor is fashioned from tough, panda-friendly bamboo (the bears prefer the softer variety). The bamboo is fast-growing and harvesting has less ecological impact than felling trees. The surround is manufactured under ethical employment conditions, and delivery of the PC monitor is within five working days.

Where from: Nigel's Eco Store, 0800 288 8970, www.nigelsecostore.com

How much: £223 for a 17-inch monitor

Play time

Branch stocks a range of fun, bright and ethically sound playthings. Plant-Me Pets (£10) are among the best. Choose from Melon, Tomato or Pumpkin - all are fabricated from natural latex, with eyes made from seeds. Squeeze their tummies and they'll squeak. The Plant-Mes come in recycled cardboard containers and are fully biodegradable, so when playtime is over, kids can plant them at the bottom of the garden and watch them grow into plants. Plus, they are manufactured under ethical working conditions in Spain.

Sleep easy

OLD GINGER OMPAK

Working only with recycled teak, Old Ginger has one of the most comprehensive ranges of ethical furniture, both traditional and contemporary, ranging from the clean, Japanese-inspired lines of the Oblio coffee table (from £750), to the cosy Swedish sleigh-bed (£1,350). Not only is reclaimed wood better for the environment, it can be more durable, too. "With the right finish, it looks nothing like old railway sleepers. Customers ask where wood is from now," says Fiona Macdiarmid, director of Old Ginger. This Ompak bed draws on her time in the Far East, and costs £1,395.

Where from: www. oldginger.co.uk

Vintage performers

LOS ROBLES FAIRTRADE CHILEAN CARMENERE

Sourced from vines grown in the shadow of the Andes, Los Robles is a range of Fairtrade wine. Premiums from its sales have paid for a new school bus for locals, plus a canteen at the co-operative in Chile's Curico Valley. Wine writer Andrew Barrow describes this Carmenère as "soft and silky with an inky complexity with flavours of black fruits".

Where from: Much of the range is at Sainsbury's, but the Carmenère is exclusive to Waitrose.

Hang loose

ONE VILLAGE'S HAMMOCK

Lie back and pretend that it's summer in this hammock from the online fair trade pioneer Onevillage.com, whose main priority is to support artisans' cooperatives in developing countries.

Working according to 13 principles of respect for the environment and artisans, One Village belongs to the International Federation for Alternative Trade, the global network of fair trade organisations that works to establish better use of the term "fair trade", and to incorporate organisations that might otherwise be left out.

Hand-finished in unbleached, organic cotton, the hammock is made by a project in southern India that encourages sustain- able development.

Where from: One Village, 01608 811811, www.onevillage.com

How much: £79

A cut above

EDUN

Edun, the brainchild of designer Ali Hewson, wife of rock star Bono, is on a mission. "I want to know that the clothes I'm buying my children weren't made by somebody else's children," Hewson says, adding that Edun aims to introduce sustainable employment to the world of catwalks and superbrands. While the brand has yet to launch a kids' range, adults can buy a ready-to-wear fairly traded look from Harvey Nichols in London (such as the Bennett dress), Tomorrowland in Japan and Saks New York.

"We want these clothes to sell on their own merit, because they are beautiful and well made," Hewson adds.

While its knits are primarily sourced from Peru, the brand offers on-the-job training in sub-saharan Africa and works with Oxfam.

A cup that cheers

CAFEDIRECT

One of the most spotlighted areas of ethical living of late has been how to get a decent caffeine fix. Cafédirect, the UK's largest Fairtrade hot drinks company, appears to have the answer.

Buying produce from 33 different companies in 11 different countries means it ensures fair trade across the board. In turn, more than a quarter of a million growers are secured a decent income. Cafédirect also puts 86 per cent of all operating profits into its producer-partner programme, designed to develop farming businesses through management training and agricultural skills education.

In essence, it works with the farmers, not playing one off against the other in order to get the cheapest possible produce.

"We believe we are doing today what many will do tomorrow," chief executive officer Penny Newman says.