Fair Trade Sees Big Growth on P.E.I.

The number of Prince Edward Islanders choosing products for ethical reasons almost doubled between 2003 and 2008, says a new report from Statistics Canada.

It was the biggest jump in ethical consumption in Canada, going from 12 to 22 per cent of Islanders.

Report author Martin Turcotte said the jump is surprising, because usually people in larger urban areas are more likely to boycott or buy products for ethical reasons.

"One of the reasons for that is that there's a bigger supply, there's some stores specialize in fair trade product, and you don't find that in smaller areas," said Turcotte.

"We don't know if people have more fair trade products in P.E.I. than in other Atlantic Canadian provinces, or if the access to these products is easier. It's either one or the other."

Islanders are still well behind the national average, at 27 per cent.

The report also looked at other forms of activism. P.E.I. leds the country in the percentage of people who attended a public meeting in 2008. Petitions were not so popular. Islanders are amongst the least likely in the country to have signed one.