From today, for the first time, British supermarkets are selling bananas labelled as fairly traded - meaning that they've been grown in circumstances fair to the producers.

The bananas are more expensive, but market research indicates that six out of ten British shoppers are prepared to pay a premium to be ethical.

A BBC correspondent says that in spite of world demand for bananas doubling in ten years, many producers are badly paid and endure poor working and living conditions.

The fair trade mark is being given to bananas grown on small independent plantations in Ghana and Costa Rica, and gives shoppers the chance to support the struggle of disadvantaged producers for a better life.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service