Pirkka is a private label brand used by grocery stores owned by the Finnish Kesko chain.
The first Pirkka products came onto the market in 1986. [1] In February 2013 there were over 2200 Pirkka products. [2] About 80% of Pirkka brand products made by Kesko are foodstuffs. [2]
Pirkka is listed in the "Well known brand names" list kept by the Finnish patent and register office. [3]
Pirkka was the first private label brand with a large selection in Finland. Pirkka was preceded by the "Sinivalkoiset" (Blue and White) brand, but it did not have the same personal brand appearance as Pirkka.
The first Pirkka brand products were basic daily household products, such as baking margarine, crisp rye bread, pea soup, washing powder, diapers and shampoo. During the first five years the number of Pirkka products grew to over 300 and during the first ten years to over 500. In 1996 ecological products were launched into the Pirkka series, with the "Luomu" ladybug as its symbol. In 1999 Pirkka started cooperation with the Fair Trade association, and the Pirkka Fair Trade coffee was launched. [4] Pirkka brand products previously had pre-printed price labels, but they were removed in September 2001, when the new Pirkka logo was also taken into use. [5] In 2013 the product line includes almost a hundred ecological products and about 40 Fair Trade products. [2]
An investigation done by Finnwatch in spring 2012 revealed human rights and workers' rights violations at two Thai factories producing private label products. [6] Kesko announced it would act to fix these problems. [7]
MTV3 selected Pirkka brand coffee as the winner in its blind tasting test of eight different coffees in January 2013. [8]
The Pirkka brand two-bladed safety razor came second after the Gillette Fusion in the Yle TV1 Kuningaskuluttaja "three hard ones" test in 2011. [9] In the previous year, Pirkka brand Karelian pasties came second in the same test after Fazer's Vuoksi pasties. [10]
In 2012 the Pirkka magazine owned by Kesko ranked six different grill sausages (HK Kabanossi Original, Pirkka A-class grill sausage, Atria Wilhelm Perinteinen, Snellman Eetwartti, Portti UkkoPekka and Tapola Viiden tähden rillimakkara) and selected Kesko's Pirkka sausage as the best. [11]
Fair trade is a term for an arrangement designed to help producers in developing countries achieve sustainable and equitable trade relationships. The fair trade movement combines the payment of higher prices to exporters with improved social and environmental standards. The movement focuses in particular on commodities, or products that are typically exported from developing countries to developed countries but is also used in domestic markets, most notably for handicrafts, coffee, cocoa, wine, sugar, fruit, flowers and gold.
Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish and meat play a prominent role in traditional Finnish dishes in some parts of the country, while the dishes elsewhere have traditionally included various vegetables and mushrooms. Evacuees from Karelia contributed to foods in other parts of Finland in the aftermath of the Continuation War.
Quorn is a brand of meat substitute products, or the company that makes them. Quorn originated in the UK and is sold primarily in Europe, but is available in 11 countries. The brand is owned by parent company Monde Nissin.
The S Group is a Finnish retailing cooperative organisation with its head office in Helsinki. Founded in 1904, it consists of 19 regional cooperatives operating all around Finland in addition to SOK, Suomen Osuuskauppojen Keskuskunta. S Group operates in the markets for groceries, consumer durables, service station, hotel and restaurant services. It is engaged in close competition with Kesko, with which it shares an oligopolistic position in many of the markets it operates in.
The Fairtrade Foundation is a charity based in the United Kingdom that aims to help disadvantaged producers in developing countries by tackling injustice in conventional trade, in particular by promoting and licensing the Fairtrade Mark, a guarantee that products retailed in the UK have been produced in accordance with internationally agreed Fairtrade standards. The foundation is the British member of FLO International, which unites FLO-CERT, 25 National Fairtrade Organisations and 3 Producer Networks across Europe, Asia, Latin America, North America, Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
Yle TV1 is a Finnish television channel owned and operated by Finnish public broadcaster Yle. It is the second oldest and the oldest existing television channel in Finland. More than 70% of the channel's programs are documentaries, news, or educational programmes. Its name is commonly referred to as Ykkönen; it derives from Yle's ownership of channels Spots 1 and 2 by default in Finland; the other, spot 2 channel, is Yle TV2.
Kesko Corporation is a Finnish retailing conglomerate with its head office in Kalasatama, Helsinki. It is engaged in the grocery trade, building and technical trade, and car trade. It also has operations in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland.
Serbian cuisine is a Balkan cuisine that consists of the culinary methods and traditions of Serbia. Its roots lie in Serbian history, including centuries of cultural contact and influence with the Greeks and the Byzantine Empire, the Ottomans, and Serbia's Balkan neighbours, especially during the existence of Yugoslavia. Historically, Serbian food develops from pastoral customs that involved the keeping of sheep in mountain highlands, in a climate and regional context that favoured animal husbandry over vegetable farming; Serbian food is therefore traditionally richer in animal products and basic grains—corn, wheat and oats—than fresh vegetable dishes. Following the abandonment of widely practiced pastoral lifestyles, Serbian food emerged through the Middle Ages heavily dependent not on lamb or mutton, but on the keeping of pigs for the annual cull and the production of various cured meats, such as sausages, bacon and ham products.
Human rights in Finland are freedom of speech, religion, association, and assembly as upheld in law and in practice. Individuals are guaranteed basic rights under the constitution, by legislative acts, and in treaties relating to human rights ratified by the Finnish government. The constitution provides for an independent judiciary.
Greggs plc is a British bakery chain. It specialises in savoury products such as bakes, sausage rolls, sandwiches and sweet items including doughnuts and vanilla slices. It is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. Originally a high street chain, it has since entered the convenience and drive-thru markets.
The 'International Fairtrade Certification Mark is an independent certification mark used in over 69 countries. It appears on products as an independent guarantee that a product has been produced according to Fairtrade political standards.
Fair Trade USA, formerly "TransFair USA", is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that sets standards, certifies, and labels products that promote sustainable livelihoods for farmers and workers and protect the environment.
Fairtrade Canada, formerly TransFair Canada, is a national non-profit certification and public education organization promoting Fairtrade certified products in Canada to improve the livelihood of developing world farmers and workers. It is the Canadian member of FLO International, which unites 24 fair trade producer and certification initiatives across Europe, Asia, Latin America, North America, Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
Fairtrade Nederland, formerly known as Max Havelaar, is the Dutch member of Fairtrade International, which unites 23 Fairtrade certification producer and labelling initiatives across Europe, Asia, Latin America, North America, Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
The fair trade movement has undergone several important changes like the operation for ten thousand villages to open their businesses since early days following World War II. Fair trade, first seen as a form of charity advocated by religious organizations, has radically changed in structure, philosophy and approach. The past fifty years have witnessed massive changes in the diversity of fair trade proponents, the products traded and their distribution networks.
UTZ, formerly called UTZ Certified, is a program and a label for sustainable farming. The organization was founded as a non-profit in the Netherlands in 2002. The UTZ label is featured on more than 10,000 product packages in over 116 countries. In 2014, UTZ was reported to be the largest program for sustainable farming of coffee and cocoa in the world. The UTZ program addresses agricultural practices, social and living conditions, farm management, and the environment. In January 2018, UTZ officially merged with the Rainforest Alliance in response to the increasing challenges of deforestation, climate change, systemic poverty, and social inequity.
Fair trade coffee is coffee that is certified as having been produced to fair trade standards by fair trade organizations, which create trading partnerships that are based on dialogue, transparency and respect, with the goal of achieving greater equity in international trade. These partnerships contribute to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to coffee bean farmers. Fair trade organizations support producers and sustainable environmental farming practices and prohibit child labor or forced labor.
Samworth Brothers is a British food manufacturer which produces a range of chilled and ambient foods, both own-label and branded. It is the owner of Cornish pasty maker Ginsters and malt loaf manufacturer Soreen, and is also known as a maker of certified Melton Mowbray pork pies.
Sustainable coffee is a coffee that is grown and marketed for its sustainability. This includes coffee certified as organic, fair trade, and Rainforest Alliance. Coffee has a number of classifications used to determine the participation of growers in various combinations of social, environmental, and economic standards. Coffees fitting such categories and that are independently certified or verified by an accredited third party have been collectively termed "sustainable coffees". This term has entered the lexicon and this segment has quickly grown into a multibillion-dollar industry of its own with potentially significant implications for other commodities as demand and awareness expand.
The cabinet of Juha Sipilä was the 74th government of Finland, from 2015 to 2019. It was formed following the parliamentary election of 2015 and formally appointed by President Sauli Niinistö on 29 May 2015. From June 2017, the cabinet consisted of a coalition formed by the Centre Party, Blue Reform and the National Coalition Party. The cabinet's Prime Minister was Juha Sipilä.
Media related to Pirkka at Wikimedia Commons