iDIDJ Australia Didgeridoo Cultural Hub

We often get inquiries through our Didjeridu Detective webpage on questionable products. Here's the latest, kindly submitted by Antonio, thanks mate.

Retailer's_Name: Return2Nature
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Retailer's_Website: http://search.ebay.com.au/_W0QQsassZreturn2nature
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Comments: I asked the seller if they could potentially rank their didj using your ratings.. They got quite angry for even suggesting an authenticity issue.. Although i do not have a large disposable income, i would rather know that my money isn't supporting the destruction of the environment and the sustainability of future generations of didj makers, players and the like.
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As always, make sure you ask plenty of questions when considering a didgeridoo purchase, it is your consumer right to be supplied with accurate information from a retailer.

Guan

This is a big step for Antonio , this is also how I got hooked up by Guan, directing some questions to didge detective
just joking,
Clearly these are again Indonesian sticks (tourist junk) and that's why Antonio's questions made sellers understandably pissed off,
my motto is : No matter what you budget is, stick to the traditional ones, you can always find one that fits in your budget!

cheers
M.

Hi Mahir,

Actually the didges offered by this retailer are from North Queensland, not much better than the Indonesian sticks - or perhaps worse because North Queensland is one of those hotspots for illegal and destructive harvesting of trees.

The other issue which has come up lately through questions and feedback from members of the public including didj buyers is the term "fair trade". Be careful when you see these words associated with didgeridoos. "Fair Trade" is a concise concept and an official phrase used to describe products that have passed certain criteria; they undergo rigorous examination before they are declared "Fair Trade". For example, coffee originating from some parts of the world where growers/producers (notably in Third World countries) obtain a bigger portion of the end price of the coffee, rather than big multi-national corporations determining how much growers/producers get (which is often not much).

No such "Fair Trade" principles and practices exist for didgeridoos. However, you might see some "Fair Trade" retailers offering didgeridoos made in Indonesia and these are described as "Fair Trade" but they are not. The retailer might be an approved "Fair Trade" organisation, but that does not mean that all products stocked by the retailer are "Fair Trade". Just be careful...

The other times you might see the words 'fair trade' applied to didgeridoos is when retailers seek to convey the idea that their didgeridoos are cheap, or that the Aboriginal artists/craftmen were paid a fair price for their instruments. This is misuse of the 'fair trade' concept, and does not necessarily mean the prices are low or that the artists/craftsmen get a fair price whatever that might be.

Anyway, just some things to think about...

Guan

To those keeping score, the instruments in question in the above link have been removed from sale.

Jason

Good news Jason,
thanks for the update
M;