FAIRTRADE campaigners in Devizes are to showcase chocolate and wine at an event on Wednesday, February 27.

Antonia Tolhurst from the Devizes group said: "As well as the tasting the ticket price will include Fairtrade hot drinks and snacks. There will also be stalls selling Fairtrade food and crafts. This is an opportunity to find out how delicious these products are, and to make a real difference to people in developing countries by buying them.

"In this country there has been a strong campaign to ensure that women’s pay and working conditions are equal to men’s, and it is easy to forget that in the developing world the gap is even greater.

" We all enjoy eating chocolate, and cocoa is the basic ingredient. It needs a hot, humid climate, so planting the bushes, clearing weeds and harvesting the beans is a gruelling task.The people who grow the cocoa have probably never tasted chocolate, and could not afford to buy a bar.

The event will be held in the Town Hall at 7.30pm as part of Fairtrade Fortnight. Devizes has been a Fairtrade Town since 2006.