Easter! What a fantastic time to seize the moral highground.

A perfect time to demonstrate that it is possible to enjoy the excessive consumption of chocolate that has just about supplanted the Christian celebration, itself stolen from the Pagans, without exploiting those who produce the raw material.

But this opportunity appears, once again, to have been given over to competitive supermarketing.

Sainsbury's, which has of late been proclaiming its support for Fairtrade, has just ended a promotion in its Heyford Hill store in Oxford, offering medium-sized eggs at half price, just 99p.

There was not a Fairtrade egg to be found, even with the assistance of sales staff.

Inquiries at the customer services desk confirmed that not only were there no Fairtrade Easter eggs in the promotion, there were no more planned deliveries of Easter eggs of any kind.

While it would be curmudgeonly to deny families a bountiful harvest of chocolate eggs, perhaps it's time to realise the fact that 99p only equates to the daily income of many of those who produced the chocolate.

We (or Sainsbury's) should expect to pay more.

Inclusion of Fairtrade products in promotions like these would go a long way towards redressing the inequalities.

Offering a discount on Fairtrade goods does not affect the initial producers as they are guaranteed a fair price.

The discount should only affect the retailer's profit margin.

We're getting accustomed to the notion of Fairtrade coffee. Chocolate is, if anything, a bigger issue.

Chocolate wars are raging in Africa and people are being killed.

It's time to wake up and taste the chocolate!

NICK HILLS Earl Street Oxford