After pressure from children’s health campaigners, this year’s 260 trails will be the last

The National Trust and Cadbury have agreed to end their 13-year partnership involving the chocolate maker’s sponsorship of the trust’s annual Easter egg hunts, following increasing pressure from health and environmental campaigners.

The high-profile £7m deal led to Cadbury organising branded Easter egg hunts for children and families at the conservation charity’s numerous heritage properties across the the UK, with the contract due for renewal next year.

But the National Trust said in a statement it had decided to end “a partnership associated so uniquely with chocolate” as it seeks to increase its focus on nature and the outdoors, while Cadbury’s decision was made as part of a strategic review into its marketing activities. This year’s 260 trails will go ahead, however.

A Cadbury spokesperson said: “For the last 13 years, Cadbury has enjoyed a wonderful partnership with the National Trust and the successful Easter egg trails. This year’s Easter egg trails will go ahead as planned, but Cadbury and the National Trust have come to a mutual decision that this year the partnership will draw to a close.

“We’d like to thank the National Trust for their partnership over this period, which has … encouraged millions of people to enjoy the outdoors.”

However the controversial tie-up has been criticised by children’s health campaigners concerned about youngsters growing up in a marketing environment that constantly nudges them towards snacks and treats.

Last year members of the National Trust called for the ending of the partnership, citing concerns about use of unsustainable palm oil in chocolate – claims strongly denied by Cadbury. Their motion did not pass at the time, but was supported by thousands of members.

A spokesperson for the National Trust said: “While this year’s Easter with Cadbury will go ahead as planned, we have both agreed this will be our last with the company. Now is the time for change as we look to increase our emphasis on nature and the outdoors. To reflect that in our Easter activities, from next year we will be making chocolate less of a focus. For this reason, it is is the right time for us to end a partnership associated so uniquely with chocolate.”

Barbara Crowther, co-ordinator of the Children’s Food Campaign, said: “We’re really pleased to hear that the National Trust wants to make chocolate less of a focus for its Easter. We can imagine so many healthy, fun and active ways for children to explore National Trust properties at Easter that don’t involve lots of sugary treats.”

In 2017 the National Trust was strongly criticised when it dropped the word “Easter” from its Cadbury-branded egg hunts, with Jeremy Corbyn saying “commercialism had gone too far”, and then prime minister Theresa May branding it “absolutely ridiculous”. The trust later reinstated the word in its branding.