At Alps and Amici Foodstore and Kitchen, owner Daniel Alps said he had seen a change in what people have bought for their Christmas dinner.

He said younger people have moved away from European traditions such as roasted chestnuts and making stuffing.

‘‘People now cook a lot of recipes that they’ve seen during the year,’’ he said.

‘‘Australia is quite a multicultural place and all sorts of things from all over the place get consumed. I think the tradition is still there but the younger generation are a lot more flexible about what they want to do.’’

For many people of other cultures, Christmas Day is of no significance.

Rachel Gordon, wife of the rabbi of the Launceston Jewish community, said the holiday was not celebrated by people of her faith.

‘‘Right now, we’re in the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah and very often, but not every year, it collides with Christmas,’’ Mrs Gordon said.

‘‘We’re on our holidays anyway, so it’s family time.’’

The Chinese community yesterday celebrated the Dongzhi Festival, a similar tradition to the Western holiday of Thanksgiving.

Tsing Wah Asian Grocers owner Anthony Kwong said his shop was full of customers stocking up on glutinous rice balls for the festival rather than buying items for Christmas.

He said the holiday was not important in Chinese culture and that most people would use the day to have a barbecue with friends.

‘‘You’ll find a big population of Launceston people will be going to church, then having a barbecue afterwards with the family,’’ he said. ‘‘For the traditional Chinese family it’s just a holiday for them, it’s a time for them to go away or go back to their home town.’’

For people of all cultures and backgrounds, being with family and friends during the holidays seems to be the one common celebration.