You’ve probably seen it quite a bit on coffee bean bags and television commercials – Fair Trade Certified Coffee. What does it mean, and what is fair trade, anyways?
Well, quite simply, fair trade means a fair price. The Fair Trade Certified label indicates that the farmers who grew the coffee and worked on the beans received a fair, living wage and price for the product. Essentially, that means that these farmers can now feed their families and have their children attend school because they’ve been paid enough to improve their quality of life.
Fair Trade Certified also indicates the product that you are buying is of high quality, since those farmers and producers avoid cost-cutting practices and refuse to sacrifice quality. The farming methods employed by Fair Trade Certified growers ensure exceptional results when it comes to the final coffee product. More than just a label, farms are inspected to ensure that, should they use the fair trade label on their products, they are surely maintaining high standards that come with claiming their support of the practice.
Additionally, Fair Trade Certified coffee that is made in the United States is certified organic and naturally grown, which means that the products you are purchasing and consuming show high levels of biodiversity, help reduce the impact of farming and business practices on global warming, and more. Organically grown coffee beans come with higher quality, better taste, better texture, and are much more nutritious than others, avoiding the pesticides and ingredients of lower quality coffee beans.
Fair Trade Certified coffee also has a positive impact on community building across the world, from Guatemala and Peru, to Papua New Guinea and Colombia. All kinds of farmers and people impacted by Fair Trade Certified Coffee have seen their quality of life improve drastically under these policies and procedures.
So, if it is important to you and significant that worker’s rights and needs are adequately and fully addressed, fair trade certified coffee may be the best option you can find for you money and consumption patterns. The label lets you know that your choices have made a positive impact on other people from around the world, and your decision to consume a higher quality of coffee bean is positively impacting people around the globe, providing them a living wage and a better chance at a quality, meaningful life.
Fair Trade Coffee is a good choice for your office!
