New managing director for Fairtrade Foundation

David Lowbridge has been appointed managing director of the Fairtrade Foundation, expanding the team now to eight people.

The new post will strengthen the internal capacity of the organisation, helping to fulfil its five year plan launched earlier this year, Tipping the Balance.

David's appointment will leave the deputy director more time to concentrate on the effectiveness and innovation of the international organisation.

The new managing director joins the Fairtrade from a career in the retail sector in both the UK and overseas. He was formerly managing director of Country Casuals from 1987 and later became managing director of Austin Reed Group plc.

He has also worked with charities, focusing on strategic development and trading issues.

The new strategy, Tipping the Balance aims to increase Fairtrade's impact on producer's lives, shift public opinion and consumer lifestyles, expand business engagement and scale up and develop the Fairtrade system.

David commented: "I am looking forward to using my experience to support and develop the work we are already doing with Fairtrade producers and partners and extending the difference Fairtrade makes to the lives of millions more people around the world."

The Fairtrade Foundation is the certification body that licenses the Fairtrade Mark to products in the UK which meet international standards. The Fairtrade Mark is an independent consumer label which appears on products as a guarantee that disadvantaged producers in the developing world are getting a better deal.