Sales of Fairtrade-branded exotic fruits and fresh convenience products in Switzerland saw a dramatic increase last year, according to Max Havelaar, the country's leading importer of Fairtrade products.
Publishing its annual report for 2012, the company revealed that Switzerland imported a total of 670 tonnes of fresh-cut and pre-prepared fruit under the Fairtrade label, up 20.9 per cent on the previous year's figure, generating a 20 per cent increase in turnover to SFr11.56m (€9.28m).
In the exotics category, which included mangoes, avocados, passion fruit, oranges, limes, coconuts and physalis but excluded pineapples, sales rose dramatically by 375.6 per cent to 1,332 tonnes, worth SFr9.16m (€7.36m) – 256.9 per cent more than in 2011. Fruit juices sold under the Faitrade brand were up 7.4 per cent to 10.52m litres, worth 3.1 per cent more at SFr35.42m (€28.45m).
In 2012, Switzerland's ethically conscious consumers were able to purchase Fairtrade-certified orangesand passion fruit for the first time. 'This steady expansion of therangeis not only a delight to Fairtrade consumers in Switzerland but, above all, it allows more producers access to the Swiss market,' the company commented.
The value of the Swiss markets for Fairtrade pineapples and bananas, however, saw modest rises of 1.5 per cent to SFr4.41m (€3.54m) and 0.4 per cent to SFr85.6m (€68.7m) respectively, although both product categories diminished slightly in volume terms to 1,281 tonnes (-1.2 per cent) and 27,958 tonnes (-0.6 per cent).
