INSIDE THE BEAT:

• Get Involved --- World Fair Trade Day, Calling all Young Artists

• Fair Trade Products and Places --- Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Tully's, Noah's Bagels

• Tune In to Fair Trade --- Trading Fair on The Today Show

• Winning Campaigns --- Dartmouth Aims to End Hunger, National Broadcast of Black Gold

• Producer Spotlight --- Association of Small Producers of Talamanca

• From TransFair USA --- Fair Trade Coffee Premiums, TFUSA Thanks the Skoll Foundation, Donate, Greenfest

Celebrate World Fair Trade Day on May 12!

We invite you to join others in the Fair Trade movement this May by organizing or participating in a Fair Trade event. TransFair is offering $500 grants to support your organizing efforts. The application deadline is April 27, so start planning today!

Calling all Young Artists

We're looking for children grades 3-12 to submit artwork for our Fair Trade Art Contest. One lucky winner in each age group will receive Fair Trade ice cream and chocolate along with a colorful T-shirt! And the teacher who submits the most student entries wins a soccer ball from Fair Trade Sports. Entries are due May 15 and will be judged online.

More Fair Trade Certified Products to Become Available at Whole Foods Markets

Whole Foods Market, the world's leading natural and organic foods supermarket, has announced a new initiative that will bring more Fair Trade Certified products to over 200 Whole Foods stores nationwide. Dubbed the Whole Trade Guarantee, it is a responsible buying program meant to ensure that certain products imported from the developing world have been sourced and produced ethically, sustainably and transparently. Read more about it here.

Discover Trader Joe's Java from the Andes

Trader Joe's is now offering a Breakfast Blend Whole Bean coffee from South American Fair Trade cooperatives. Look for Fair Trade Certified coffee when you shop at one of the nearly 300 Trader Joe's stores in 22 states. The best part? This Breakfast Blend is priced at only $5.99. Now that's a fair trade!

Tully's Coffee Offers Organic and Fair Trade

18 Bay Area Tully's Coffee locations have begun using Fair Trade Certified organic coffees in all their espresso and decaf espresso drinks. Show your support for Tully's new 100% Fair Trade Certified espressos and stop by one of the Bay Area locations.

Find Tribeca Blend at Noah's Bagels

Noah's Bagels(R) has introduced an organic and Fair Trade Certified coffee blend in all 70 of its locations in Oregon, Washington and California. Tribeca Blend was created with Coffee Bean International, exclusive roaster of specialty coffees for Noah's Bagels.

Caffé Umbria Announces New Fair Trade Blend

Created from 100% organic beans, Terra Sana, a medium roast Fair Trade Certified coffee from Caffé Umbria, has a chocolaty aroma and soft, earthy undertones. Buy it online here.

Divine Chocolate Launches Chocolate Bar for Spring

The Divine Dark Chocolate with Mint bar by farmer-owned Divine Chocolate is a delightful combination of smooth Divine 70% Dark chocolate with refreshing crispy mint pieces and Fair Trade sugar. Kuapa Kokoo, the farmer group producing the cocoa, has invested Fair Trade premiums in providing clean drinking water, building schools, providing free medical clinics and promoting women's leadership.

Help Find a Cure with Veloce Coffee's Speranza Blend

This new Fair Trade coffee blend has a smooth dark roast, hints of cocoa and vanilla, and a buttery finish. In the spirit of giving, Veloce Coffee will donate $1.00 from every purchase of Speranza to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, with the goal of defeating breast cancer.

Trading Fair on The Today Show

How does the taste of Fair Trade measure up? Watch this short video feature on coffee that recently aired on MSNBC's The Today Show and find out.

Dartmouth Aims to End Hunger

Inspired by his experience with Oxfam America, Jonathan Merten, Dartmouth College student and member of Dartmouth Ends Hunger, led a successful effort to switch the bananas sold at a popular campus eatery to Fair Trade Certified bananas. Fair Trade bananas will cost only 10 cents more than conventional ones. "Giving a dime to ensure livable working conditions isn't that much to ask," says Merten. "The benefits far outweigh the costs." Read more about winning campus campaigns here.

Hundreds nationwide join TransFair to watch Black Gold - Thank you!

On April 10, people from Vermont to Nebraska gathered to watch the PBS nationwide broadcast of Black Gold. From intimate gatherings in homes to café events and university film discussions, Fair Trade leaders helped spread the Fair Trade message far and wide. We thank each and every House Party host and all event participants for standing up for what you believe and taking the initiative to organize in your own community. If you'd like to host a Fair Trade House Party, we have all the resources you need here.

Association of Small Producers of Talamanca

APPTA is a cocoa and fruit cooperative in the Talamanca region of southeastern Costa Rica. Founded in 1987, APPTA now has a membership of over 1,200 producers, of whom 80% are indigenous and over a third are women. APPTA is located in the Caribbean Biological Corridor, a conservation area that connects the mountains of La Amistad Biosphere Reserve with the Caribbean coast. Co-op members use organic production techniques and plant shade trees that not only protect the land, but also provide nutrition, medicines, and building materials for their homes. Find more information on APPTA and other Fair Trade producer groups here.

Fair Trade Coffee Premiums to Rise for Farmer Cooperatives

TransFair USA is pleased to announce that the Fair Trade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) Board has approved an increase in the Fair Trade Social Premium for coffee and the Organic Differential for certified organic coffee by $.05/pound each. The decision is the result of an extensive multi-stakeholder consultation that included input from growers, industry, external experts and FLO national labeling initiatives from 19 countries. Learn more here.

TransFair Thanks the Skoll Foundation

TransFair CEO Paul Rice and Director of Development Jonathan Feldman were honored to take part in the 2007 Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford University in March. Paul shared the stage with social enterprise luminaries like Jeff Skoll, founder and Chairman of the Skoll Foundation and Participant Productions, Muhammad Yunus, and Peter Gabriel. TransFair is deeply grateful for the opportunities the Skoll Foundation provides to connect with allies dedicated to using innovative techniques to address enduring social challenges.

Donate to TransFair USA today!

As a non-profit, TransFair depends on the financial support of friends like you to expand our work empowering consumers and producers to build a more equitable and sustainable model of international trade in which all benefit. Click here to make a donation online, or contact our Development Department at (510) 663-5260 or via email at development@transfairusa.org for more information or to discuss your donation options. Thank you!

Join TransFair at GreenFest (Chicago) and the Specialty Coffee Conference (Long Beach)

GreenFestival will be held in Chicago April 21-22, and the Specialty Coffee Association of America takes place May 4-7. Come visit TransFair's booth, meet Fair Trade farmers, and get involved. If you'd like to volunteer at GreenFest, please contact Jean Walsh (jwalsh@transfairusa.org).

Welcome to our new licensed company partners

Allegro Coffee, Cool People Care, Fair Trade Coffee Company, HT Brown Coffee, Kiva Coffee Roasters, Sisters Coffee, and Urraco Coffee.