Equator Coffee Roasters’ Sustainable Supply Chain E
quator Coffee Roasters is an Ontario-based company that believes that social justice begins with choices. They have chosen to be part of a genuinely sustainable import system, working directly with smallscale farmers and their exporting cooperatives.
Founded in 1998, Equator purchases exclusively fair trade, organic coffee. Their relationships with coffee growers have been built through direct participation with their green coffee importing co-op, Cooperative Coffees. Craig Hall, co-owner of Equator Coffee, says, “We believe that farmers need long term partnerships to create a sustainable business. That is why we pay more than double the industry commodity price.” This stable base price allows farmers to finance and plan their seasons without fear of risk, contributing to more consistent and higher quality products.
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Redefining the “good” in good business, Equator has achieved B Corp certification. The interests of their stakeholders are equally important to those of their shareholders. The B Corp movement expands fair trade beyond a label on a product into a comprehensive, open-door, open-book, open-heart ecosystem of business in which these stakeholders—people, environment and community—matter. One of Equator’s ongoing partnerships is with SchoolBOX, an organization that makes education possible for Central American students. Since 2010, Equator has donated a portion of every bag sold to provide school supplies and build classrooms for coffee growing communities in Nicaragua. Through Cooperative Coffees, Equator supports farmers using monies from an Impact Fund, a vehicle for sponsoring innovations in the field, such as the Cool Farm Tool. This carbon initiative allows farmers to measure their environmental
impact with hard data. Using this data, coffee roasters like Equator are able to pay an additional carbon premium directly to the farmers, compensating them for their environmental services. Recently, as a COVID-19 relief effort, the fund released $130,000USD for emergency needs in producer-partner communities. Many communities have been hit hard by the pandemic, which has affected jobs, food prices and health care. The relief fund takes care of coffee farmers and their families, further strengthening a sustainable supply chain. After more than 20 years of paying farmers higher prices, investing in relationships, prioritizing sustainability, and never giving up the fight for good, Equator and its thriving community are living, breathing proof that the investment is paying off. To learn more, visit Equator.ca
