The report, from the International Development Committee, House of Commons, also said that DfID should take the lead on facilitating other government departments’ procurement of Fairtrade products, and that it should take immediate action to enable more producers to access Fairtrade.

The Fairtrade Foundation welcomed the report, calling on DfID to take a lead within the international donor community to secure funds for a £50 million strategic investment. This is the amount, according to Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International, which is necessary for the future of Fairtrade worldwide over the next five years.

Harriet Lamb, executive director of the Fairtrade Foundation, said: “We urge the Department for International Development to now step up its support for the practical work of Fairtrade as an immediate and concrete response to the Committee report. An ambitious programme to bring more poor producers from more of the world’s poorest countries into the Fairtrade system is urgently needed, and DfID can help support this programme as part of a longer-term strategy where the UK government takes leadership internationally to show that Fairtrade is a way to tackle poverty.”