Fairtrade is an ethical accreditation scheme where products are marked to tell customers that workers at every stage of the manufacture of that product have been properly paid and treated.

Fife Council first supported Fairtrade in 2004, allowing Burntisland to become the first Fairtrade town in Fife - St Andrews, Cupar and Lochgelly/ Cardenden have followed suit.

Fife Fairtrade Forum is working towards achieving and maintaining Fairtrade County status for Fife and Councillor Fiona Grant, chairman of the group, said: "When the Forum was looking round Fife for Fairtrade activity we were surprised that a large town like Kirkcaldy did not already have Fairtrade status.

"With enough interest, the next step will be a public meeting to form a group."

To achieve Fairtrade accreditation, a town must have one cafe and two shops per 10,000 population which sell at least two Fairtrade products.

Kirkcaldy would need about eight shops and four cafes selling at least two products, depending on what boundaries were decided for the town.

There are also goals relating to numbers of schools, churches and workplaces which use Fairtrade products.

Cllr Grant also hopes a Kirkcaldy Fairtrade committee can be started, to help achieve this accolade.

Cllr Grant added: "Because there is not a Fairtrade group in Kirkcaldy we have no one person or group to ask for information about shops, cafes, workplaces and churches which regularly use Fairtrade products.

"I hope people will send me this info directly, for a credible application we need a spread of premises throughout Fife."

If anyone would like more information on any aspect of Kirkcaldy becoming a Fairtrade town, e-mail Cllr Grant on cllr.fiona.grant@fife.gov.uk phone (01592) 743435 or hand in a note to the Town House addressed to her.