Equal Exchange started with an idea: what if food could be traded in a way that is transparent ethical, and, beneficial to both producers and consumers. The founders asked this question as they envisioned a trade model that values each part of the supply chain. So they took a big risk and plunged full-force into changing a broken food system. In 1986, they started with fairly traded coffee from Nicaragua and didn’t look back. Three decades later, Equal Exchange continues to be a worker-owned company that seeks out the best-tasting ingredients from small farmer co-ops and imports them as directly as possible.

Equal Exchange’s mission is to build long-term trade partnerships that are economically sound and environmentally responsible, ensuring that farmers and consumers alike benefit from an eddicient, market-driven approach.

Beginning in 2010, Equal Exchange partnered with the USAID Cooperative Development Program to expand its efforts, using private-sector principles to strengthen farmer partnerships and enhance economic opportunity. By demonstrating the effectiveness of cooperative business models and ethical trade, Equal Exchange continues to empower producers, promote American leadership in global commerce, and reinforce the principles of free and fair trade.

View their website for more information: Equal Exchange – Home
Project: USAID Cooperative Development Program – Equal Exchange Resource Center