O’Briens Sandwich Bars launch their O’Briens branded Fair Trade Tea in over 250 stores throughout the UK and Ireland on Monday 6th March, 2006 in association with Fair Trade Ireland and Clipper-Teas.

“It is very fitting that we launch our Fair Trade Tea during Fair Trade Fortnight’s “Make Fairtrade Your Habit” campaign. Fair Trade fortnight is a key opportunity for both customers and providers to look at how they are contributing to the wider community, the developing world, and our environment, and how we can continue to ”, said Brody Sweeney.

O’Briens new fair-trade tea is currently sourced from Tea gardens in Africa, India and Sri Lanka, at present the main source is Stockholm tea estate in Sri Lanka.

“The Fair-trade Mark is an important step towards a fairer deal for producers in Third World countries. It is an independent consumer guarantee that the people who actually produced the goods really have benefited from the exchange and receive fairer terms of trade and a price that covers production, allows for investment and a basic living wage”, added Brody.

“It is very important that brand leaders like O’Briens take an ethical approach to doing business and also offer their customers the opportunity to purchase Fair Trade products”, said Peter Clayton, Director Fair Trade Ireland.

O’Briens partnership with Clipper Teas, the first tea company in the world to be awarded the Fair-Trade Mark is a very important one. O’Briens chose Clipper-Teas because of they too are a company which has grown from small beginnings, never compromising on quality and have a vision similar to O’Briens of providing quality foods from an ethical environment.

O’Briens tea supplier Clipper-Teas is also the first tea company to operate a minimum price policy for tea - a guarantee that producers' incomes are secure for the future, and they are also a massive organic range of teas.

“Clipper pays producers a guaranteed fair price for their crop, plus an extra 'Fair-trade Premium' of Euro 50 Cents (around 35p) per kilo, which goes direct to the producers for community investment. An elected committee of male and female workers and managers decide how to invest this premium” says Michael Bremhe.

“Raising awareness of the impact Fair-Trade has on farmers and workers in the Third World through businesses is key to the expansion of Fair-Trade offerings in Ireland and abroad. The Fair-trade Mark guarantee that these products fulfill the strict criteria set by the Fair-trade Foundation covering education, housing, healthcare, fair pay, safe working conditions and many other welfare matters”, added Peter.

O’Briens business ethos is to offer customers choice, and to continuously evaluate and improve our quality offering, which includes an organic range of foods and the development of ethically produced products. Essentially O’Briens believe being good is good for the bottom line.