I Love the Java Jive and It Loves Me...

There are few things better in the world than the smell of the first pot of coffee in the morning. I woke up this morning at the obscene hour of 4:00 and came down to the couch to read, where I promptly fell asleep again. I was jolted awake by the sound of Nigel grinding coffee beans (ahem) but I was willing to forgive once I heard the water drip and smelled the coffee.

I was still on the couch when I heard him pouring the dark, hot brew into cups, and the clinking of his spoon as he stirred honey into his. That first sip of coffee in the morning is heaven. So are all of the subsequent sips, but the first one is really special.

So, what's in your cup? Right now, we've got an organic fair trade blend from Whole Foods. I don't remember which one and the bag is long gone. We're both coffee junkies and we like good quality roasts. We're also more and more interested in fair trade coffee.

Defining organic coffee is easy--it's grown without use of pesticides. Fair trade is also easy to define and it's an important designation to seek out. From the Global Exchange Web site (they say it better than I would, so I'll let them...):

Fair Trade is a viable solution to this crisis, assuring consumers that the coffee we drink was purchased under fair conditions. To become Fair Trade certified, an importer must meet stringent international criteria; paying a minimum price per pound of $1.26, providing much needed credit to farmers, and providing technical assistance such as help transitioning to organic farming. Fair Trade for coffee farmers means community development, health, education, and environmental stewardship.

Our world is facing a global food crisis. With rising food prices--due in large part to the current "challenges" in the US economy--poor countries are feeling the pinch more than the rest of us. European leaders are taking this seriously and have been holding meetings this week to address the growing crisis. Buying Fair Trade coffee allows those who are growing coffee in the third world to earn an honest wage, so they can afford to live. We expect nothing less for ourselves, why do we accept it for our brothers and sisters around the world?

There is a great book on the topic called Javatrekker: Dispatches from the World of Fair Trade Coffee. It's written by an American who has traveled the world, and is one of the leaders in this movement. He buys his coffee directly from the people, paying fair prices, and helping them diversify their crops, start side businesses, and think about sustainability issues in their own communities. It's a fascinating read, and there is an outstanding interview on PRI's "The World" with the author here. It's well worth the 15 minutes or so and you'll learn a lot about how and where you buy your coffee. Bottoms up!

(Oh, and did you know that Dunkin Donuts coffees are Fair Trade? Kudos to them.)