Fair Trade Coffees

Those who love fine coffee have many decisions to make. There are a great many different types of coffee being sold and the choices include selecting green or roasted beans to begin with and whether to have roasted beans ground or to do it at home. There is also the matter of how dark a roast is desired and what kind of grind is best for the coffee brewing method being used. But what does it mean when a selection is called one of the fair trade coffees?

Except for Kona coffee which is grown domestically in Hawaii, all coffee in America is imported. Various international groups have in the past tried to regulate the wholesale and to some extent the retail price of coffee. This benefited big growers and coffee brokers but did little for smaller coffee growers. Fair Trade Coffees on the other hand are priced and sold to give a better return to the smallest of operations and strive to improve working and living conditions as well as benefiting the local community around coffee farms.

To be labeled as fair trade coffees, they must be sold by farmers who belong to a coop and meet certain other conditions. For example, they are forbidden to use child labor and certain regulations are in place to maintain safety in the workplace. The operations of the coop are required to be democratic and transparent and there is a policy of contributing to the community as well as receiving individual profit. Coffees that have been produced according to the requirements receive fair trade certification from the Fair Trade Labeling Organization.

Fair trade coffees are purchased from the coops at a price that is about the usual for wholesale coffee at this level. Growers in a coop are guaranteed a minimum price, but if the actual price is higher, they receive the actual price. Not all of the profit goes directly to the grower as the coop retains some of it for operating expenses but especially for community betterment. Fair trade coffees have provided educational scholarships to children and young adults who would otherwise never had such a chance. Other benefits have included cancer screening programs and environmental improvement.

While fair trade coffees now constitute a very small percentage of the total worldwide coffee market, that figure is increasing every year. Religious and other humanitarian groups encourage their members to purchase fair trade coffees as a way to help improve the quality of life for others while obtaining a quality product. A decent percentage of fair trade coffees are being grown organically which also adds to their appeal among consumers who prefer more natural foods and beverages.

Fair Trade Coffees

Fair trade coffees are those beans, which are purchased directly from coops of growers at higher prices than they would normally receive if the sales went through a middleman.   For more info on fair trade coffees please visit this web site.