UK-based ethical brewer Brewgooder has set up the world’s first Fairtrade-certified brewing supply chain for climate-resilient fonio grain – bringing what it described as ‘game-changing’ potential for farming communities in West Africa.
The brewer is the first to harness the ‘super grain’ in a commercially available UK beer – Brewgooder Fonio Session IPA – but has purposely made the fonio supply chain it has set up ‘accessible to all’.
Named ‘Open Grain’, any UK brewer or business looking to utilise fonio will now be able to tap into a Fairtrade-certified supply of the grain, creating an income stream that could be transformational for the economies and communities reliant on its native soil in West Africa.
Fonio features on the World Wide Fund for Nature’s ‘50 foods for the future’ list, as it doesn’t require fertilisers and uses much less water to grow than barley, making it an ideal crop to grow in less fertile soils.
The pioneering supply chain was set up in just six months thanks to close working between the Glasgow-based B-Corp-certified brewer and fonio farming cooperatives in Guinea.
According to local cooperatives, 67 farmers have signed up, with two thirds of those joining since Fairtrade certification. Depending on the growth and success of the supply chain, it is hoped hundreds of farmers and the communities that surround them could benefit in future.
The maiden product of that Fairtrade supply chain, Brewgooder Fonio, is described as a ‘delicious, crisp and hoppy’ Session IPA (4.3%), and has already secured placements in Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, the Co-op, and with British Airways.
Founder at Brewgooder, Alan Mahon, said: “Alone we can make a small but meaningful difference, but as an entire industry – even if only adopting Fairtrade fonio in small amounts – we can support farmers in Guinea to make a game-changing impact on these communities while simultaneously bringing quality and desirable products to market.
“Enabling other beer producers to use our supply chain makes that possible. We’re not adopting Fairtrade fonio to give ourselves a USP, but to show what can be achieved when you collaborate with farming communities for a fairer deal,” stressed Mahon.
“We faced almost impossible odds in bringing this supply chain together in just six months, but we achieved it through the incredible effort, commitment, and drive of our farming and logistics partners. It demonstrates that a vision for a fairer, more equitable world can make seemingly impossible things happen.
“There’s a huge appetite for Fairtrade products in the UK, and it’s absent in the beer category at present,” he added. “People care about fair and just trade, and if they can achieve it through the products they buy, then they will make that choice.”
Kantar research from 2022 revealed that nearly 80% of consumers have chosen Fairtrade products over an alternative, driving growth in retail sales of bananas, coffee, flowers, and tea marked as Fairtrade.
Brewgooder’s own turnover increased 74% to £3.7m last year, and is predicting that its new fonio product will add more than £2 million in retail sales to the UK’s Fairtrade market annually, with the potential to grow significantly beyond that.
Coordinator in the Guinea farming cooperative, Maimouna Diallo, commented: “We look forward to a fruitful partnership that benefits not only our farmers but also the wider community and the environment. A true circular exchange between Africa and the UK – a win-win situation.”
