A Brief Coffee Update

The values are on the wall - literally!

One of my first blog posts after moving to Boston was about my frustration at being given disposal coffee cups, regardless of whether I was drinking in or taking away. I'm happy to say that I have since been shown that there are exceptions! The Thinking Cup serves you great coffee in a non-disposable cup, as does Render Coffee Bar, which also has yummy chocolate and macadamia cookies. However, en route to explore Charleston today, I discovered the Equal Exchange Cafe. This sells products from Equal Exchange, a co-op founded in New England, which has an inspiring vision: "We invite you to share in our vision of a better world — a vision that connects us more closely to the food we eat and to the farmers who grow it". Over its 20-year lifespan, the co-operative has worked tirelessly to bring consumers fairly traded coffee as well as other products such as tea, sugar, chocolate and bananas. In the beginning, the idea of more equitable relationships with farmers was written off by the specialty coffee industry as absurd; however today, Equal Exchange believes there are "400 coffee companies purchasing at least a small portion of their coffee under Fair Trade terms". A great success story, although the co-op is clear that it still has a long way to go.

The cafe near the Charleston Bridge in Boston is a place where Equal Exchange can engage consumers in the importance of fair trade and the great tasting results - and the results are good! What's more, they give you a discount if you use your own cup:

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