Glastonbury Festival charity goes bananas

United Kingdom | | 17 October 2007

Glastonbury Festival organiser Michael Eavis has donated a share of proceeds from this year's event to help aid the Latin American banana industry.

Eavis donated £74,000 of the Pilton festival’s profits to the Banana Link, a charity which helps to create communication links between unions in Latin America and unions in Britain.

Glastonbury’s contribution will be used to employ union leaders in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Peru.

The leaders will then aim to end the exploitation of the farmers giving them a fairer deal for their work.

Talking to BBC News Eavis said: “It is essential that farmers and farm workers stick together and I see this gift to Banana Link as an example of us working together towards these ends.

“Farmers and farm workers, no matter where they are in the world, are entitled to a fair deal and a fair award for their skills and labours.”

The 2007 festival also raised around £2 million for Oxfam, Greenpeace and Wateraid.