My name is Helene, and I have been an interrupter for the past several years. Recently, I moved to Southern California where I give tastings of interrupcion* Fair Trade products on an almost daily basis. I would like to relate an interesting occurrence at a very large Whole Foods store in El Segundo, California. The grocery store attracts a lot of Asian businessmen on tours of the area.
None of the men passing my demo table seemed to speak any English, and for the most part, they barely acknowledged me standing at the table as I invited them to taste Interrupcion* Fair Trade products. That is, until their Asian interpreter came along, who stopped momentarily in front of my table.

Since I have only seconds to catch a persons’ interest, I began to talk quickly about Interrupcion* Fair Trade products. As the interpreter translated the Fair Trade information, I got the feeling that the businessmen were still unmoved and not interested in tasting the products. The interpreter tried to help by tasting the Black Olive and giving the thumbs up sign.

I continued to explain as clearly as I could that Fair Trade is a process which positively impacts the farms, workers, and producers by building healthier communities while respecting our environment. This is done by guaranteeing that the farmers receive what they are entitled to: a larger share of the earnings that go directly back to them. Suddenly, the page turned. One of the men quickly whipped out a small note pad and pen and started taking notes furiously. I did not have any Interrupcion* Fair Trade business cards to pass out so I gave them one of my half empty demo jars of the Black Olive and pointed out the website for further investigation.

I am thankful for the interpreter who translated my explanation of what Fair Trade means in a nutshell — he seemed to understand the message and passed the information along so that the others could truly appreciate the meaning of Fair Trade. It was a beautiful connection, and I felt the impact of sharing the message of Fair Trade among this particular group of tourists. No matter who you are, the message is clear: everyone benefits from Fair Trade.

~Helene Mueller-Beilschmidt

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