Fairtrade products manufacturer Max Havelaar sees sales growth in Belgium

In Belgium Max Havelaar sold over 20 per cent more of its fairtrade products compared to a year earlier. Although the sales in fairtrade products have increased, the sales growth was smaller than last year, last year the turnover increased with 30 per cent.

The two most known Max Havelaar products, bananas and coffee, saw their sales increase with 7 per cent in the first half year of 2009. The sales of rice increased with 5 per cent. The sales of fairtrade juices increased with 13 per cent, wine with 20 per cent. The highest growth rate saw the biscuits and chocolate, from these products they sold over 40 per cent extra.

Source : Food Holland

Spanish supermarket Chain BonPreu sells more than 100.000 Fairtrade products

The Catalan company was the first distribution company in Spain introducing fairtrade products in their assortment (over 10 year ago).

BonPreu sold last year more than 100.000 units of FairTrade products, an increase of 25% to 2007. This number indicates the increasing interest in Catalonia in fairtrade products and social responsable retailing that is guaranted by the quality of the products.
The social responsability and the willing to support a model of honest products and production methods are clearly seen, people do not want child labor and want a honest Benedit for the manufacturers and employees.

BonPreu is well known for the colaboration with fairtrade organizations ONG Intermón Oxfam and they celebrated several times the Party of FairTrade, organized by Setem-Catalunya. This party is celebrated in May, the month of fairtrade retailing, the consumers is offered and presented a big assortment of fairtrade products and explained the story behind these products. Outside the month of fairtrade retail BonPreu and Esclat offer fairtrade products in their assortment like coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate. Next to the sales of these products the supermarket chain is comitted to the organizations Setem-Catalunya and Intermón Oxfam and “Manos Unidas (Hands United), an organization that develops different project in third world countries. They also support the Foundation Internation Josep Carreras for health care projects and projects related with the maintenance of the environment.

Bon Preu currently operates 127 supermarkets and hypermarkets, achieving sales figures of EUR275 million over 2009.