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Our best practices
Cooperative Coffees is a green bean buying collective comprised of fair trade roaster/members. We are committed to working in partnership with our associated coffee producer cooperatives in order to create more equitable trade mechanisms. We strive to promote fair trade and sustainable development alternatives in both the North and the South, while continuing to sell the highest quality coffee on the market.
To understand our step by step process to importing coffee, you can take a look at our guide to importing coffee. From setting a relationship with a producer cooperative, to creating an open contract, from ensuring that we received original organic certificates, to checking that the coffee arrives in port on time, we outline all the steps that are crucial to getting a bean from port to port.
As a fair trade organization, being transparent is important. Visit our unique Fair Trade Proof website to see all of the documentation, including organic certificates, contracts, and bills of lading, that go into importing fair trade organic coffee. It is an online tool that allows the consumer to trace their particular bag of coffee to the precise producer group that that grew that coffee, and see all of the documentation, from contracts, to invoices and bills of lading of that particular transaction.
Our approach to importing green beans however, goes much beyond the mere mechanics of a typical importer. We believe in developing transparent, long term relationships with our producer partners. This means that our relationship is much deeper that the usual buyer-seller relationship. Start by looking at the different producer cooperatives with whom we are engaged.
Next, you can read our producer agreement, which goes over the responsibilities that producers agree to
in participating in this work relationship.
Cooperative Coffees believes that involvement in the Fair Trade movement goes beyond the importation of fairly traded coffee and products. In 2006, Cooperative de Solidarite du Cafe Equitable ("Coop Sol") was officially established as sister coop and the "social branch" of Coop Coffees. The Montreal office helps facilitate Special Projects, Producer tours, and Events; and runs the "Labo Equitable" quality control lab.
Our approach also includes building powerful Strategic Alliances with other folks that share our values.
