NCA 2004 Report Indicates Awareness of Fair Trade Certified Coffee on the Rise
12% of those surveyed are aware of FTC, up 7% from 2003. Of those aware of FTC, 45% have purchased FTC coffee.

National Coffee Drinking Trends >


New Partners in Fair Trade as of August, 2004

Coffee:

Asplund Coffee, LLC
Buffalo, MN
Brown & Jenkins
S. Burlington, VT
Canterbury Coffee
Canterbury, NH
Cape Cod Coffee Co.
Mashpee, MA
Coffee Enterprises
Burlington, VT
Desert Rain
Tucson, AZ
Javo Beverage
Vista, CA
Kimberton Coffee Roasters Kimberton, PA
Kobos Coffee
Portland, OR
Kuva Coffee
Saint Louis, MO
Puroast Coffee
Woodland, CA
Queen City Coffee
West Chester, OH
Red Rambler Coffees
Wauseon, OH
Safari Pride
Minneapolis, MN
Square One Coffee
Lancaster, PA
The Coffee Tree
Pittsburgh, PA
The Roastery
Minneapolis, MN
Wicked Coffee
Minneapolis, MN


Tea:

 Frontier Natural Brands Norway, IA
Rishi Tea
Milwaukee, WI
Sapna Foods
Atlanta, GA


Cocoa:

Frontier Natural Products Co-op
Norway, IA
Northwestern Foods
St. Paul, MN
Nutraceuticals (Fun Fresh Foods)
Park City, UT


Fruit:

Caito Foods
Indianapolis, IN
Sanson Co.
Cleveland, OH
Turbana Corporation
Coral Gables, FL

Online Licensee List >



Fair Trade in the (Multi) Media

News from the Fair Trade world woke the media from its summer slumber. Read on about the many ways Fair Trade reached consumers in the past two months.

TransFair hit the airwaves this July in Portland, Oregon when FM radio stations KBOO and KINK aired interviews with spokeswoman Haven Bourque. Bourque discussed the importance of Portland consumers to the growth of the Fair Trade market.

High definition TV watchers enjoyed a visual Fair Trade feast this summer when HDNet aired a special report on Fair Trade coffee. Their crew filmed on location at coffee co-ops in Nicaragua and in TransFair's Oakland office.

In other news, Fair Trade was covered in the Boston Pheonix and the Cincinatti Inquirer among numerous other outlets. Click here for more Fair Trade in the News.
July/August 2004
National Fair Trade Month to Debut This October
Ahh, autumn. Indian summers, harvest moons. This October, to celebrate our connection to the world's Fair Trade farmers, thousands of grocery stores, cafés, chefs, students, community organizations, and consumers will be promoting Fair Trade Certified™ products during our first-ever National Fair Trade Month.
You can take part in this inaugural effort by offering and/or attending one or more of the numerous promotions, contests, special events, training sessions, and farm visits slated to occur throughout the U.S.
TransFair will be coordinating farmer tours and Fair Trade product tastings throughout the nation, and we'd be happy to help you plan your event or participation.

For ideas and resources, visit Fair Trade Month on our website, call 510.663.5260, or e-mail ftmonth@transfairusa.org. Ask about our National Fair Trade Month Activity and Promotion Guide. Or, simply click below to get started:


Ideas for Retailers and Distributors >

Ideas for Fair Trade Licensed Companies >

Ideas for Consumers and Consumer Groups >
(Church members, students, and other supporters)

Fair Trade Month Events and Promotions Calendar
Find out about promotions in your area, or register your own Fair Trade promotional activity by clicking here.

Join us in celebrating and start planning today!
Read about the success of Fairtrade Fortnight, a similar event sponsored by our sister Fair Trade labeling organization in the U.K.
Expo East: A Pre-election Food Fest
TransFair USA will have a booth and will host a Fair Trade panel at Natural Products Expo East in Washington DC, October 14-17. Come visit our booth #736 to sample Fair Trade Certified products and learn more about Fair Trade.
Our panel discussion "Fair Trade Certified Solutions for Effective Merchandising and Promotion" will take place Friday, October 15 from 3:00 p.m.-4:15 p.m. TransFair’s Andi Trindle Walker will moderate a panel discussion with Caroline Cahan from A Southern Season, Rob Everts from Equal Exchange, and Joe Romano from Green Star Co-op.

Eric Ring, representing Choice Organic Teas at the Fair Trade Pavilion
 Fancy Food in NYC: One Singular Sensation
The Fair Trade Pavilion at the New York Fancy Food Show (June 27-29) was a smashing sucess. The nine tea, chocolate, and coffee companies that exhibited alongside the TransFair booth helped create some serious Fair Trade frisson. We kept up our end of the bargain in the City That Never Sleeps, hosting a cocktail reception for retailers and TransFair licensees -- complete with donated champagne, beer, food, art, and a fantastic jazz trio -- as well as a panel discussion, moderated by Charlotte Opal and featuring Monica Gelinas from the Pret a Manger restaurant chain, Erika Fowler Decatur from Ithaca Fine Chocolates, and Zhena Muzyka from Zhena’s Gypsy Teas.
We graciously received a TV crew from Boston’s ABC affiliate. They rushed over to find us after being told by a strolling chef that the “best thing about this show is the Fair Trade Pavilion." Just a reminder: if you’re ready to start planning your participation in next year’s show, e-mail Kristan Almgren.

New Certification Fee Schedule for Coffee Roasters:
Effective Q2 2004
TransFair USA’s new certification fee schedule applies to all roaster licensees. By offering an incentive to increase FTC volume and FTC percentage, as well as to submit certification reports and fee payments on time, we are striving to improve the accuracy of the Fair Trade certification system.


The new fee schedule introduces:

  • An across-the-board licensing fee discount for licensees who submit certification reports and payments on time (as established in our licensing agreements).

  • Deeper discounts, driven by absolute volume.

  • Deeper discounts, driven by the percentage of a licensee's FTC coffee against total volume (when verified by an approved, third-party source).
For information about the new schedule, contact Deborah Hirsh of TransFair USA's Coffee Business Development Team via e-mail or by phone at (510) 663-5260.
BizDev's Schaffran Passes the Torch
In July, we bade a fond farewell to Nate Schaffran, who left our Business Development team to pursue a Master’s degree at Georgetown University. The torch has been passed to two new members of the Business Development team, Chris White and Kristina Pappas.
Welcome Chris and Kristina!
Fair Trade Premium Blossoms in Korakundah Tea Garden
Cultivated at an altitude of 8,000 feet in the Nilgiri 'Blue Mountains' of southern India, tea from the Korakundah tea garden is among the highest-grown in the world. The garden has become one of India's premier organic tea estates.
Established in 1922, Korakundah remains firmly committed to sustainable production methods and conservation of the local ecosystem.Tigers and panthers are spotted regularly in the dense jungle surrounding this pristine garden.

The tea-worker community has improved the lives of permanent workers, temporary workers, and citizens from surrounding villages by investing its Fair Trade premium in a wide range of services and facilities, including:

Retirement benefits. In a country that lacks adequate care and services for the elderly, Korakundah established a pension and housing fund to provide vital financial support for its retired tea workers, many of whom, for example, have been able to construct small homes.

Education. Korakundah built a new, well-equipped science laboratory, and bought a new school bus along with several new computers. And, in a shining example of Fair Trade's economic ripple effect, the community has constructed a hostel for its students from non-grower families who live in outlying communities.

Health care. Korakundah now vaccinates all its children against Hepatitis B and Typhoid at the tea garden's health center.
Coffee Review’s September Cupping:
A Fair Trade-Only Affair
Since 1997, the experts at Coffee Review have been reporting on their blind coffee cuppings, issuing 100-point reviews not unlike those found in the wine industry. This September, their cupping will consist solely of Fair Trade coffee. Bravo, we say!

The publication strives to entertain and educate coffee enthusiasts from the grounds up, with words for the wise from Kenneth Davids and other coffee professionals. And a huge congrats to Kaffe Magnum Opus for their Nicaraguan Matagalpa scoring 91 in Coffee Review's August blind tasting. Click here for the review.


How do you like the TransFair Buzz? Let us know >