New! Co-op + Equal Exchange Private Label Coffee
Like many of you, we take coffee personally at Skagit Valley Food Co-op. And after over 20 years of roasting coffee in-house, we’re pleased to introduce our new private-label partnership with Equal Exchange! This relationship allows us to off you a bulk coffee option that’s fairly traded, co-operatively owned (like us!), and just a downright delicious cuppa. Plus, Equal Exchange is located just a hop-skip down the I-5 corridor in Portland, Oregon, keeping the footprint small and the flavor fresh!
If you’ve been around the Co-op for a while, you might already be familiar with Equal Exchange. What you might not be familiar with, though, is their goal of building a better food system, in cooperation with their long-term trade partners and retail collaborators, including co-ops like ours.
The Equal Exchange Story
Founders Rink, Jonathan, and Michael started Equal Exchange with an idea: what if food could be traded in a way that is honest and fair, a way that empowers both farmers and consumers?
After taking a big risk by importing fairly traded coffee from Nicaragua in 1986, the founders were able to solidify a relationship with farmers in Latin America, and the rest is history.
Equal Exchange's mission is to build long-term trade partnerships that are economically just and environmentally sound. They achieve this through sourcing ingredients from small farmer or artisan cooperatives, offering higher than conventional market prices, prohibiting the use of more dangerous pesticides and herbicides, and more. Nowadays, Equal Exchange specializes in not only fair trade coffee, but also chocolate, dried fruit, nuts, tea, and even cheese.
Why Equal Exchange Coffee?
But first, coffee. You might wonder why we’re no longer roasting coffee here at the Co-op. Like our decision to partner with Olympia Coffee Roasters in our Deli, the Equal Exchange relationship sustains our longstanding mission to provide good food (and coffee) at a good price.
The Co-op began roasting its own coffee in the late 90s as the popularity of coffee surged, to fill a very important need: a delicious cup of coffee that was also ethically and sustainably sourced. Espresso stands weren’t always a thing, and sourcing Fair Trade organic shade-grown coffee beans was a rarity. So, the Co-op began sourcing coffee beans that adhered to our buying guidelines and aligned with our principles of treating people and planet fairly.
Now, we are transitioning for several reasons, but the simple fact is, the Co-op is not a roastery. We set out to roast coffee because finding Fair-Trade organic coffee was hard to do; it is much more common now. Our tiny little roaster isn’t equipped for the volume we need to produce for our customers – you certainly do love your coffee! Our space is also limited, for roasting and for storing beans. The Co-op’s storage situation has always been a tricky one, and as the store continues to grow, we’re running out of room to store the appropriate amount of coffee beans we need to have on hand.
Along with some internal limitations, shipping costs for a large load of green beans have sky rocketed. The ripple effect of the pandemic and political unrest in coffee-growing regions continue to impact supply chains across the globe, including coffee. So, the Fair Trade organic beans we’ve come to rely on, are unfortunately, not as reliable we need them to be to continue to serve you a consistently good (and fair) cup of coffee day in and day out.
Like the original search for good beans way-back-when, we spent time researching, interviewing, discussing, and, of course, tasting beans from roasters around the region. While there are several quality coffee companies in the area, all with different areas of specialty, but after much due diligence, we decided to build on our existing relationship with Equal Exchange. EE has been a staple in our Co-op for years, and their values align directly with ours.
Co-op Principle 6: Cooperation Amongst Cooperatives
Along with leading the charge on the Fair Trade movement, Equal Exchange is also a worker-owned co-operative that’s over 130 worker-owners strong! In an act of Cooperation Amongst Cooperatives (Co-op Principle 6), Equal Exchange is able to provide us with a reliable source of beans that are fairly priced. With Co-op to Co-op pricing at just $10.99/lb, you get an approachable, affordable, delicious cup of coffee you can feel good sipping on, knowing you’re supporting farmers who are getting paid a fair wage for their work and communities that benefit both socially and economically through the Equal Exchange model.
New Co-op Coffee Roasts
As Pacific Northwesterners, we’ve got a penchant for dark, rich coffee flavor, which makes Portland-based Equal Exchange the perfect fit for our new roasts. Together, we handpicked new specialty roasts to enrich your coffee routine. And, if the roast doesn’t matter to you, selecting a roast based on your favorite Skagit-inspired name, is perfectly acceptable, too.
Tulip Stack
A nod to the iconic smoke stack that welcomes visitors far and wide to Downtown Mount Vernon, our Tulip Stack is a single-origin Ethiopian city roast. Fruity and complex with tasting notes of ginger, spice, and blueberry, this medium roast is exceptional in a pour-over, and especially lovely on a drive through Skagit during our famous flower festivals.
Farmland Forever
A Peruvian coffee with tasting notes of maple, grape, and floral, this single-origin roast celebrates our special slice of farmland and the hands who tend it. Leaning on the light-medium roast scale, this coffee is juicy and bright, just like the future of farming in Skagit Valley.
San Juan Island Hop
Grown in Nicaragua, this dark, French roast coffee is round and mellow with tasting notes of dark chocolate, brown sugar, and applewood. If you like a classic PNW dark coffee, San Juan Island Hop will be your new go-to, especially if you’re headed out to our beloved San Juan archipelago.
Río Mágico
Named for the Magic Skagit River, the lifeblood of our incredible valley, this Mexican Vienna is a dark roast with a rich, creamy texture and features tasting notes of dark chocolate, raisin, and citrus. We recommend sipping on Río Mágico while soaking up the beauty of the Magic Skagit - it’s only fitting.
Mossflower Morning
Imagine gently rocking on a porch swing overlooking your favorite scene, hot cup of coffee in hand, writing haikus: counting syllables, rapid ripples soft riffles, this one is for you. A blend of dark French roast and medium roast, our Mossflower Morning is a smooth, soothing way to start the day.
Baker Sunrise Decaf
No caffeine? No worries. Baker Sunrise decaf features all the rich coffee flavor you need to brighten your morning, with notes of chocolate, butterscotch, and brown sugar.
Shop Bulk for a Bounty of Benefits
We love the flexibility of shopping bulk! But saving money and getting exactly what you need are just a couple of the benefits. Purchasing bulk coffee is a great way to cut down on your personal packaging waste, especially if you bring in your own clean, reusable container! In fact, if everyone in America bought coffee beans in bulk, we would divert 260 million pounds of foil packaging from landfills every year.
Buying bulk coffee lets you control the freshness and grind size of your beans. You can buy whole beans and grind them at home, or utilize the grinder in Bulk to get the perfect grind for your perfect cup, whether you prefer pour-over, french press, or a good old-fashioned auto-drip.
All that said, if you’re more of a grab-a-bag-o’grounds-to-go type, you’ll find a wide selection of Equal Exchange ground coffee in the Co-op. All organic and all fair trade certified, choose from breakfast blend, French roast, Mind Body & Soul, Love Buzz, and a co-op exclusive, Biorevolution.