Getting Easter eggs? Get Fairtrade! 

At Easter we celebrate the gift of new life given to us through Jesus Christ. In our celebrations, we strive to do things that reflect God’s love and offer new life to others. Fairtrade Easter eggs are a symbol of new life – and help to bring a better life to the people behind the products.

We’ve all become used to picking up shopping for people over the past year – so what about asking in your church whether anyone would like a Real Easter Egg, ordering for everyone, and then dropping the eggs off on people’s doorsteps?

A number of churches also donate cases of the eggs to their local food banks – a great way to share Easter joy.

What’s available?

All links take you directly to the products mentioned.

The Real Easter Egg

This egg has a special place for many Christians. It focuses on the real meaning of Easter, telling the Easter story through its packaging and a leaflet included inside.This year, supermarkets are cutting down the number of lines they carry, and so they are not carrying the Real Easter Egg. If you want one, you will have to get it either from a Fair Trade shop, an online retailer, or directly from the company itself.

You can find the Real Easter Egg locally at the  shops below:

• • RISC World Shop in Reading (open)
  • Just Trading in Wallingford (open)
  • Fair Trade at St Michael’s (click and collect or will post all non-food items and Easter eggs – postage is a fixed £3.50)
  • Headington Fair Trade (click and collect)
  • the Mustard Seed (Faringdon – local delivery only or Saturday market stall

To buy online, go to Traidcraft, which sells both the dark and milk chocolate varieties, as individual eggs or in cases of six. Or go to Meaningful Chocolate’s own online store, where you can buy not only the dark and milk chocolate varieties – singly or by the case – but also an assortment of sharing boxes, with smaller eggs and multiple copies of the Easter story leaflet.

If you want to order the Real Easter Egg, please do so quickly. Meaningful Chocolate Company expects to have sold out by early in the week of 8 March. Traidcraft and the local shops currently have stock – but this won’t last long.

Other Fairtrade Easter eggs and chocolates

Cocoa Loco is famous for its quirkily-shaped chocolates: its Easter range not only includes eggs in a variety of shapes and flavours (think milk chocolate and raspberry, Bakewell, and lemon drizzle), but chickens, rabbits, and farmyard lollies. Their packaging is all biodegradable.

Divine has a range of full-sized eggs (dark, dark with raspberry or hazelnut, and orange milk) and also bags of mini-eggs.

Traidcraft,Ethical Superstore, andAbel and Cole all carry a selection of Fairtrade Easter chocolates, which you can order online for home delivery.

Among the supermarkets,  Coop is unique in having a selection of own-brand Fairtrade Easter eggs, including an ‘Easter egg hunt box’ and some specialist flavours, such as ‘Golden praline’. They also have a ‘Free from’ option.

Waitrose’s own brand eggs have Fairtrade cocoa in the chocolate, but are not fully Fairtrade. They also carry two fully Fairtrade Green and Blacks eggs.