Fair-trade products catch on with UK consumers

The average UK spend per head on fair-trade in 2007 was 6.50, followed by France and Germany with a spend of 2.50. In the USA, the spend was just 1.50.

The UK was also the largest market in Europe for fair-trade products, with spend of 395.3m, followed by France at 152m and Germany at 99m.

"Ethical consumerism will increasingly come to the fore as people shop for products they feel akin to politically, ethically and aesthetically," said report author Nick Beevors.

"Consumers will choose brands that are actively making a difference in a transparent and trustworthy manner."

Across all countries, beverages account for the largest share of fair-trade product sales.