Java Blend Coffee is committed to supporting environmentally sustainable coffee growing practices that treat coffee growers fairly. We participate in programs that encourage practices such as shade growing, biodiversification, and organic farming.
Java Blend has been licensed by TransFair Canada since 1999 to roast and distribute Fair Trade Certified Coffees. Fair Trade raises incomes and living standards for small coffee farmers. Fair Trade practices include paying farmers a fair price for their harvests; an amount that provides a decent wage for their labor. The Fair Trade program provides working capital to farmers. The program also promotes sustainable agricultural practices, such as organic and shade grown farming, that help protect the environment. And Fair trade premiums are used by producer co-ops to improve health care delivery in their communities and to support community social programs for women and children.
The Rainforest Alliance (RA) is an NGO that works on a not-for-profit basis, helping farmers improve not just their bottom line, but also their crops and their way of life. Their mandate is “to protect ecosystems and the people and wildlife that depend on them by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behavior. Companies, cooperatives and landowners that participate in our programs meet rigorous standards that conserve biodiversity and provide sustainable livelihoods.” (from rainforestalliance.org) With over 49 million acres of farm certified, RA is assisting those in coffee, as well as growers of bananas, citrus, cocoa, and flowers. Working only with donations and fundraisers, the RA is able to share more with the farmers, while keeping their operating costs as low as possible. The standards they impose on their farms help the farmers secure high prices for their coffees because of quality above anything else.
The Cup Of Excellence is the most esteemed award given out for top coffees. These awards come from a strict competition that selects the very best coffee produced in that country for that particular year. These winning coffees are chosen by a select group of national and international cuppers and are cupped at least five different times during the competition process.The final winners are awarded the prestigious Cup of Excellence awardand are sold to the highest bidder during the internet auction.The Cup of Excellence fundamentally changes what we know is possible in exemplary coffee. Often these award winning coffees are so good that consumers' expectations of what a coffee can taste like are definitely exceeded. The payment to the coffee farmer is more than Fair. There is no program that is as exciting for the coffee lover, the roaster, and especially the farmers whose monetary reward often changes the lives of their entire family and the rural communities where they live.
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