Fair Trade Travels

Traveling overseas—like the winners of our chocolate contest did to Ghana in 2007—is often a transformative experience for U.S. consumers. What better way to understand the realities of their brothers and sisters in other countries than spending time in communities struggling with poverty and confronting health issues such as HIV and AIDS? The same is true for producers! If they visit a marketplace for their products they can better understand consumer expectations and develop partnerships with buyers. The Specialty Coffee Association of America hosts an annual conference that is a prime opportunity for coffee farmer to learn and share. The Fair Trade Fund sponsored the 2008 trips of Jitzy Ruizcenteno of CRS-supported La Fem Cooperative in Nicaragua and Policarpio Ali Cruz of the Federation of Exporting Coffee Producers in Bolivia to the SCAA in Minneapolis, hometown of our CRS Fair Trade partner Peace Coffee. Both farmers export through the efforts of Cooperative Coffees in North America, and were able to use the time in the United States to participate in a tour Midwest communities. Some farmers, such as Jose Perez Vazquez of Chiapas were able to participate in World Fair Trade Day activities, which were also supported by the Fair Trade Fund.

Perez Vazquez from Chiapas, Mexico visits Chicago to celebrate World Fair Trade Day. Photo by Jesus Huerta/CRS

Jitzy's visit was hosted by Coop Coffees member and CRS Fair Trade partner, Just Coffee, based in Madison, WI. In an interview with a local newspaper, Jitzy described her time in Wisconsin, "Last week I went to a lot of churches, schools and markets—we were at a Spanish-speaking school [Nuestro Mundo] and a cafe in Verona…. We were at the Farmers' Market on the Square on Saturday, sharing information and meeting consumers. This week at the Mermaid [coffee shop] I've been learning to be a barista, because our co-op wants to open a coffee shop in Estelí. We don't have a place for it yet, or even an espresso machine. It's a project we're still figuring out—a new challenge for us. This trip's been an unusual experience. I've never done anything like it before. We're rural women, and producing our coffee is a lot of hard work, so I'm glad to know that there are so many people helping small producers like us commercialize our product in a fair market." Your purchase of Fair Trade coffee helps make these kinds of experiences possible for farmers like Jitzy through the Fair Trade Fund.