Sales of Fairtrade products rise to 2.9 billion euros
Additional financial premium for small farmers and workers: Fairtrade premium rises to 44 million euros
Sales of fairtrade products in Germany rose by 13% to €2.9 billion in 2024, setting a new record - Fairtrade Germany reported at its annual press conference. Sales grew by 5 percent - the strongest growth in four years. Sales of the most important product categories all increased.
"Fairtrade sales are developing very positively despite the challenging economic situation," emphasized Benjamin Drösel, Director of Marketing at Fairtrade Germany. Coffee sales rose by around 6 percent to 24,660 tons, bananas by 7 percent to 121,800 tons. Cocoa beans saw a positive development with an increase of 11 percent to 89,000 tons, as did Fairtrade roses, which grew by 10 percent to almost 509 million stems.
The market share of Fairtrade coffee in Germany is 5.3 percent, that of cocoa just under 21 percent. 16% of bananas sold in Germany bear the Fairtrade seal, while the figure for roses was 44.5% in 2024 - a record.
Diverse selection, broad availability
German consumers are increasingly turning to fair trade products: They spent around 35 euros per capita per year on goods with the Fairtrade seal in 2024. Visibility and availability are increasing, with supermarkets, discounters, drugstores, specialist retailers and restaurants now offering over 8,700 Fairtrade-labeled products. Almost 600 companies work together with Fairtrade and thus also take concrete steps to fulfill their corporate due diligence obligations.
Fairtrade premium increased
"World market prices for raw materials such as coffee and cocoa are currently very high. Unfortunately, farmers do not automatically benefit from this," explained Claudia Brück, Head of Communications and Policy at Fairtrade Germany. "The prices are partly due to stock market speculation and partly due to harvest losses that need to be compensated for. Fairtrade therefore remains important even in times of high prices!"
The volume of the Fairtrade premium, which is paid locally in addition to the sales price, rose to 44 million euros. It enables important investments. "The training we offer and the fact that producers organize themselves into cooperatives strengthens them and secures supply chains in the long term," says Brück. Fairtrade also enables projects and programs in cooperation with business partners and state donors. This includes, for example, a fund to enable measures to fulfill due diligence obligations and HREDD regulations.
YouGov survey: This is how fair Germany is
"In Germany, there is generally a high level of consumer interest in fair trade," said Dr. Robert Kecskes, Senior Insights Director at YouGov Shoppers Intelligence, confirming the positive sales trend. On behalf of Fairtrade Germany, the market research institute investigated the question of how fair Germany is - and, together with Fairtrade, presented the "Fair Atlas", which examines the status of topics such as sustainable behavior, voluntary commitment and children's rights. "Our survey results show that consumers value trustworthy seals when it comes to consumption, and Fairtrade is one of them." Volunteering is one of the cornerstones of social cohesion and is highly valued across all areas, emphasized Kecskes.
Volunteering in fair trade: schools, universities and cities for fairness
Fairtrade also thrives on voluntary work, explained Christina Arkenberg, Chair of the Supervisory Board of Fairtrade Germany: "Before the summer vacations, we will be awarding the 1000th Fairtrade school in Germany. 750,000 children and young people learn at a Fairtrade school. They raise awareness of fair trade at their schools, offer fair products, organize workshops, fair fashion shows or sports events." According to Arkenberg, this commitment continues on campus at around 50 award-winning fair universities - and in over 950 Fairtrade Towns across Germany, local authorities are proving that fair procurement is possible and are campaigning locally for global fairness. Half of the population in Germany now lives in a Fairtrade Town.
Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.
Other news from the department business & finance
