More Australians seek a Fair Trade Easter

Media Releases, News, Oxfam Shops, Shops & Fundraising article written on the 01 Apr 2010

More Australians are buying Fair Trade chocolate this Easter, according to international aid agency Oxfam Australia.

Sales of Fair Trade Easter chocolate through Oxfam’s shops across Australia are 64 per cent higher this year than last year, for the four weeks leading up to the Monday before Easter.

The rise is particularly noticeable in South Australia, where Fair Trade sales are 85 per cent higher than last year, and in NSW and the ACT where people have bought 83 per cent more Fair Trade chocolate.

Queenslanders bought 55 per cent more Fair Trade Easter chocolate this year than last year; West Australians 53 per cent more; Victorians 52 per cent more and Tasmanians 47 per cent more Fair Trade Easter eggs and bunnies than last year.

Oxfam’s Director of Trading, Nadine Silverberg, has welcomed the trend.

“It’s exciting to see more and more Australians deciding to help others by buying Fair Trade products,” Ms Silverberg said.

“Increasingly, people are recognising that buying Fair Trade products is something tangible they can do to help those less fortunate than themselves.”

“Choosing to buy Fair Trade means better wages and conditions for producers in developing countries, and more secure and independent lives for producers, their families and communities.”

“In addition to our better known Fair Trade chocolate, tea and coffee, Oxfam’s shops sell a wide selection of beautiful Fair Trade handicrafts from around the world.”

This Easter, some of our toy bunnies are proving especially popular, including our hand woven ‘Baby Bunnies’ made by rural women in Nepal, and our colourful Wooden Easter Bunny Puzzles which are helping to provide training and support to young people in Sri Lanka.”

“Behind every product sold through Oxfam’s shops is a story of how the artisans and farmers who produce the items are becoming increasingly self-sufficient, and improving their lives,” Ms Silverberg said.

Oxfam’s Easter range of Fair Trade chocolate includes delicious Easter eggs and bunnies in a variety of sizes. More information is available from www.oxfamshop.org.au/easter2010