Northern Canterbury wines helping survivors of slavery

While on vacation in India, Alana and Pete Chapman were shocked when they encountered a large number of young women sold as prostitutes. The injustice was such a blow that when they returned to New Zealand they vowed to do something about it.

Four years later, 27 Seconds was launched, a line of wines with 100% of the profits going to support survivors of slavery.

Christmas Eve 2013

In 2013, Alana and Pete were in Kolkata visiting a friend who runs Joya, a social enterprise that provides positive employment opportunities for women affected by the sex industry.

They were staying near Sonagachi, the biggest entertainment district in Asia.

Since it was Christmas Eve, they decided to meet one of the wonderful women who helped Joya find a replacement job.

They hurried through the alleys where they saw hundreds of women lined the streets waiting to be procured.

There was a group of young women who stood out more than Alana and Pete.

They were distinctly different from other West Bengali women living in the area.

When I asked why Alana and Pete looked so different, I was told that they were trafficked from Nepal and sold into prostitution.

“At that moment, we realized that we had passed through modern-day slavery,” says Alana.

This realization came as a huge shock to Alana and Pete.

“There are no words to describe it,” Alana says. “No one should be sold for someone else’s benefit.”

They wanted to help, but didn’t know what to do.

Back in New Zealand they are back to work and Pete is the Vineyard Manager at Terrace Edge, a family owned vineyard.

“Wine and slavery aren’t quite a natural fit,” Alana says. “This is a difficult problem and we didn’t know how to help.”

One day Pete came home and suggested making a wine that would donate 100% of the profits to charity.

The seed has been sown.

reality

There are more people in slavery today than ever before.

“A lot of people believe we abolished slavery in the last century,” Alana says. “But this is not far from the truth.”

The exact number of people trafficked into modern slavery worldwide is difficult to ascertain due to the covert nature of this crime.

However, as of November 2016, UNICEF estimated that about 46 million people were experiencing some form of modern slavery.

A more conservative report by the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that around 25 million people worldwide are in forced labor, including victims of human trafficking.

Either way, the numbers are staggering.

43% of those who experience modern slavery are sold into the sex trade.

Of these, 1.2 million are children (UNCEF, 2002).

The numbers are shocking, and the problem is so heinous, it’s no surprise that ordinary people think there’s nothing they can do about it.

Alana and Pete refused to believe this.

“We cannot and will not solve modern-day slavery, but we can contribute to helping,” Alana said.

“Our goal was really simple.”

“People drink wine. If we make and sell good wine, we can return the profits to the organizations working in this field.”

27 seconds

Pete first asked the family if they could buy some of the grapes from their vineyard, Terrace Edge.

The couple then set out to develop not just one wine, but five popular wines. 100% of her profits will go to Hagar, an international organization that provides intensive recovery care to victims of slavery, human trafficking and severe abuse in Cambodia and Vietnam.

Hagar also provides humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan.

As winemaking developed and humanitarian organizations were scrutinized and determined, they had to come up with a name.

“We decided to call the wine ’27 Seconds’ after the UNICEF statistic,” Alana says.

“If you analyze the numbers, it turns out that 1.2 million children are sold into slavery each year, and one child each year.” 27 seconds“

To date, they have donated over $200,000 to this cause.

“It’s a small response to a big problem, but if people buy our wine, we can all be a small part of the solution,” says Alana.

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