Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council hosts ‘Fairtrade Bake-off’ for local school children

A special bake-off event for local schools has been held in Cloonavin to help raise awareness of Fairtrade products within the Causeway Coast and Glens borough.

The event, arranged by Causeway Coast and Glens Steering Group, aimed to highlight its Fairtrade Community status which has been in place since 2019. The school children were challenged to bake their favourite sweet treats using as many Fairtrade products as possible.

The bake-off was open to all year 6, 7 and 10 pupils, as these year groups study Fairtrade at school as part of the curriculum.

The competition challenged these young bakers to use Fairtrade ingredients like chocolate, cocoa, sugar, icing sugar and bananas to make a tasty selection of tray bakes, cakes or buns.

Mayor Ciarán McQuillan said: “Our Fairtrade Bake-Off competition proved very popular and allowed us to showcase the range and quality of Fairtrade products which are available to local consumers.

“I would like to thank all the local schools who took part and contributed to the success of this initiative. Well done to all our young participants and winners and I’m sure I’ve met culinary heroes of the future today who I hope will continue to make Fairtrade choices in the future.”

Following initial heats in local schools, the successful bakers attended the grand final in Cloonavin, where judges declared Emma from Dalriada School the Senior winner and Áine from DH Christie Memorial Primary School the Junior winner.

Judging was based on criteria including the number of Fairtrade ingredients used, taste and overall presentation.

The Mayor added: “As one of the judges, I was incredibly impressed with the skills, baking ability and creative thought process that clearly went into making these baked items. Thank you to everyone involved and special congratulations to Emma and Áine on winning the Senior and Junior Bake-Off 2025 titles.

“The council and Fairtrade Steering Committee have made great efforts to increase the number of outlets who provide Fairtrade options locally and to encourage more people to choose Fairtrade. We continue to be very proud that Causeway Coast and Glens has Fairtrade Community status.”

Fiona Watters, Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council Fairtrade Group Steering Group member, commented: “We wanted to raise awareness of Fairtrade products and encourage their use among local school children and their families.

“Children in schools across the borough took on the challenge by researching the Fairtrade campaign, recipes and ingredients and made the most delicious Fairtrade cakes and buns. Everyone had a lot of fun getting creative in the kitchen while learning more about Fairtrade. Thank you to everyone who took part and supported our pupils to make such fantastic bakes.”

Fairtrade Community status follows years of effort from Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, working alongside local partners including businesses, schools, churches and community groups.

The award, a dual accreditation from the UK Fairtrade Foundation and Fairtrade Ireland, follows on from previous accreditation for Ballycastle, Ballymoney, Coleraine, Limavady, Portrush, Portstewart and Rathlin Island.

Fairtrade is a simple way to make a difference to the lives of the people who grow the things we all consume daily. It provides better prices, decent working conditions, fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world and a chance to address climate justice.

To find Fairtrade products in your local shop look out for the distinctive Fairtrade Mark or check if your local café or restaurant displays a “We stock Fairtrade” sticker or poster.

When you buy Fairtrade products you are ensuring that thousands of producers in 57 poor and developing countries are paid a fair price and you’re supporting Third World workers to build classrooms, employ nurses, educate their children and invest in a better life.

Interested in finding out more? For further information on Fairtrade across Northern Ireland please visit www.northernirelandfairtrade.org