New Video Showcases the Organization's History and Plans for the Future
Video
Twenty years ago, Fair Trade USA’s Founder and CEO Paul Rice brought an idea from his field work in Nicaragua to a one-room office in Oakland, California. What started with coffee and conviction – and not much else – is now the leading market-based model of sustainable production, trade and consumption.
Since its launch with coffee in 1998, Fair Trade USA has:
- Partnered with over 1,300 brands to generate more than $500 million in additional income for farmers and workers around the world.
- Expanded to more than 30 different product categories including coffee, tea, coconut, seafood, cocoa, produce, apparel, home goods, and more.
- Grown into an internationally-acclaimed social enterprise and leading certifier, with an estimated $7 billion in U.S. retail sales of Fair Trade Certified products in 2017 alone.
- Established key brand partnerships with market leaders including: Patagonia, west elm, Gap Inc., Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Starbucks, Nespresso, Driscoll’s, Dole General Mills, PepsiCo, Whole Foods, Costco, Target, Walmart and more.
