We just received our first shipment of olive oil and soap from
Zatoun -- a Canadian, all-volunter organization that is very committed to fair trade and supporting Palestinian farmers and non-profits. (There is more information about Zatoun below.)
We have three wonderful products to sell, and because of a very generous donor, 1
00% OF THE PRICE WILL GO TO SUPPORT PfP - MADISON'S PROJECT TO BUILD A PLAYGROUND IN JENIN!* Fair Trade Extra Virgin Olive Oil -- 750 ml bottles of the best oil you will ever taste! Great for dipping, dressings, and cooking. And healthy, too!
$22/bottle
* Four Bar Gift Box -- This is soap made in Nablus, which was the home of the modern formulation of soap in 700 AD. It was a center of soap making for 1400 years. Pre-1948, there were 45 soap factories there. Today, there are barely 2 in operation, and only part-time.
The soap comes in 4 varieties, one bar of each in the gift box: honey, goat's milk, lemon, & dead sea mud.
$20/box
* Scent-Free, Pure, White Soap -- hand made by a women's collective in Tibay, a christian village in Palestine. It is made of pure olive oil, with no additives, and has a dedicated following among parents for use with infants, and with people with sensitive skin.
$6/barORDER BEFORE APRIL 15th, AND GET A SPECIAL BONUS! Any order of $40 or more will get a bar of the pure, white soap free! Buy early for Mothers Day and Fathers Day! And we'll even deliver it to you within the Madison area by May 1st. Send an email to pfpmadison@gmail.com with your order, or drop a check in the mail to PfP- Madison, PO Box 5091, Madison, WI 53705-0091 and tell us what you'd like (and how to get in touch with you). AND THANKS!
Do you have a book club, faith community, social group or co-workers that might be interested in the soap or oil? Let us know and we can set you up with materials and can help make it a successful PfP fundraiser!
More on
Zatoun:
Zatoun works closely with
American Friends Service Committee. All the oil goes to Canada, and is then shipped on from there. It cannot be sent directly into the U.S. because they have chosen to make a statement by printing "Product of Palestine" on the labels, and that means it cannot go through U.S. customs. Other oils use different language to get around that, but they feel strongly enough about it to deal with the consequences.
Zatoun partners with the
Palestine Fair Trade Association (PFTA), based in Jenin. Zatoun tries to do have as much of the production done in Palestine as possible to support the economy, so the entire manufacturing process -- label printing, carton making, bottling -- is all done there. They calculate that they have been able to contribute $350,000 to the Palestinian economy in the past 5 years.
Currently, there is no global fair trade standards for olive oil. But Zatoun is so committed to fair trade that they pursued certification through a Swiss organization, the
Institute for Market Ecology, and had them review their standards, examine the distribution chain, and monitor
them in order to receive certification.
Enjoy a tempting buffet of Middle Eastern delicacies at King of Falafel, and learn about the children of Jenin Refugee Camp for whom we are raising funds to build a playground. We will also have fair trade olive oil and olive oil soap for sale.
