Fair Trade ensures a fair price and better working conditions for growers in developing countries – growers that provide us many goods we consume each day.

PFC serves and carries bulk Fair Trade coffee exclusively, which we buy from Equal Exchange.

Worldwide, coffee is the second most heavily traded commodity after oil – a large portion being destined for sale in the United States. Much of the world’s coffee supply is produced on huge plantations throughout tropical regions of the world. Low quality, mass produced coffee floods the market bottoming out the price, making it increasingly difficult for small, rural – often indigenous – farmers to make a living.

Equal Exchange and other Fair Trade organizations deal directly with small coffee farming cooperatives, eliminating middlemen and allowing a minimum fair price of $1.29 per pound (compared to the current market price of less than 30 cents per pound).

The higher price these farmers receive goes a long way to improving their quality of life, enabling them to build schools and clinics, and to rise above the poverty line.

PFC offers a daily selection of organic coffees at no additional expense. These premium beans are grown using sustainable methods and no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. These coffees are also shade grown; coffee trees are planted in the forest. This traditional farming method preserves habitat for indigenous and migratory birds and other animals, and the trees help protect the soil and watershed, along with providing wood to the farmers.

For more information on Fair Trade, visit these websites: Equal Exchange, Fair Trade Federation, TransFair USA, Oxfam.