Grounds for Change Coffee: Fair Trade Focus
By Tania Reuben
The day hasn’t really started until you’ve had a cup of coffee? Sound familiar? It does for me! It doesn’t even matter if it’s “leaded,” I just love the flavor and aroma as it wafts through the house.
Have you ever wondered about where your coffee is grown and the conditions of the workers that are growing them. In the early 2000 coffee prices dramatically dropped causing extreme hardship for growers. During the recovery a surprising industry shift began, fueled by a demand for organic and fair trade coffee.
Image Courtesy of Amy Hensen
Some coffee growers began to focus their efforts on growing higher quality beans for almost double the price regular beans garner, and better still farmers converting to organic can expect to earn 3-4 times what the low quality beans garner. Slowly these changes are beginning to have a real impact on the industry.
As the Fair Trade market grows, growers can offer more jobs, pay better wages and consider offering benefits like health insurance. Things previously not an option in the past. We can continue to support these changes by making Fair Trade choices.
Grounds for Change is one place you can support changes like these. They are a family run company based in the Pacific Northwest, doing their part to bring a great coffee to the marketplace.
They roast organically grown fair trade beans in small batches, creating top of the line coffee in the coffee meca of the US. They don’t stop there, they make every effort to run their business sustainably, through the purchase of carbon offsets, composting efforts and recycling – to name a few of their efforts.
They are Certified Organic, Carbon Free and Fair Trade.
They recently sent PND some of their coffees to sample, we tried:
Peru “Cafe Femenino”, a dark roast with chocolate aroma that was rich enough to keep dude happy. It’s also grown by women – ergo the name.
Nordic Blend, a dark roast with notes of black cherry and chocolate. Another rich roast to make dude smile.
Decaf Midnight Blend, this blend is the darkest of their decaf offerings with chocolaty notes.
Grounds for Change decaffeinates using a water process to preserve the coffee’s organic certification.
With the holidays coming up consider a fair trade gift for the coffee lover on your list, with the coffee of the month available in 3, 6 & 12 month options.
Try the 3 pack sampler, on sale for $18.95.
Congratulations to our Winner Carol D!
Better yet, Grounds for a Change will be giving one lucky reader a 3 Pack Sampler!
HOW TO ENTER:
There are a few ways you can enter, leave separate comments for each entry.
Mandatory:
Become an Email Subscriber to PND using the form in the sidebar.
– The subscription must be confirmed. You will receive and email that you must reply to for your entry to be valid.
– Already a confirmed Subscriber. Complete any one of the additional entries options – Leave a comment letting Diva know you’re subscriber name and the entry option you selected.
Additional Entries
1. Go to www.groundsforachange.com – Share your favorite blend or something new about GFC.
2. Stumble, Digg, or Technorati favorite this post. Leave a comment with your name and the link.
3. Follow @purenaturaldiva & @grounds4change on twitter (use link on the sidebar). Leave your twittername in a separate comment.
4. Become a Fan of Pure Natural Diva & Grounds For Change on Facebook. Post this giveaway as an update, leave your FB Name or Name with a copy of your update in a separate comment. One entry for each.
5. Tweet this giveaway. Copy and paste “Diva Fair Trade Giveaway, 3 Pack Coffee Sampler – Grounds For a Change http://bit.ly/3DSpX7 @purenaturaldiva”. Then come back and leave the direct link to your tweet (go to your twitter account, click on the words when your tweet was sent (ie. 5 seconds ago) and copy and paste that link in comments.
6. Write a post on your blog linking to my blog and to the Grounds For A Change Website – Good for two entries. Leave this comment twice so you get both entries!
This giveaway will run through midnight on November 11, 2009 PDT, with winner being announced by the morning of November 13, 2009. Winner will be chosen using Random.org from all valid entries and notified via email. Winner will have 24 hours to contact me before another winner is chosen.
Giveaway is open to residents of the U.S.
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I subscribe.
I learned they compost all their organic waste, including coffee filters. Great company!
I follow both on Twitter.
Tweet:http://twitter.com/tnimmer/status/5074082330
I already am an Email Subscriber to PND
This sounds so delish !!
Nordic Blend DARK ROAST Bold notes of black cherry & chocolate.
I Follow @purenaturaldiva & @grounds4change on twitter
I follow you both on facebook and posted this sweep http://www.facebook.com/home.php (Jewel Cowart) oh and my twitter is nankani
Tweeted http://twitter.com/Nankani/status/5089005351
subscriber!!!
I’d love to try: Solstice Blend
Email subscriber.bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com
My favorite is the Seabrook Blend.bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com
I’m a subscriber and my favorite blend would be the Nordic blend!!
I am a subscriber.
I am a fan on Facebook (Tamara Bennington)
My favorite blend is the Green Tea with Peach
I just became a confirmed subscriber.
I’d live to try the Agate Pass Blend and the Nordic Blend.
.-= cindi´s last blog ..Flyer/Brochure Giveaway =-.
I just subscribed!
Thank you 
Taracloudspassby78 (at) yahoo (dot) com
I follow both on Twitter @notsoperfect2Thank you
Taracloudspassby78 (at) yahoo (dot) com
I tweeted here: http://twitter.com/notsoperfect2/status/5332605408Thank you
Taracloudspassby78 (at) yahoo (dot) com
Hi, I am a confirmed subscriber. -Kie Best
I learned something new on the Grounds For Change Website: “All Grounds for Change coffee is 100% fair trade and organic certified.” That’s great!
I Follow both @purenaturaldiva & @grounds4change on twitter. My twitter name is Kaleoki
I tweeted about this giveaway. Here is the Link: http://twitter.com/kaleoki/status/5333065783
I subscribe
I would like the French Blend roast.
I subscribe.
The half-caff blend sounds interesting.
I just became a subscriberdigicat{AT}sbcglobal{DOT}net
I like dark blends, so I would choose the Nordic Blenddigicat{AT}sbcglobal{DOT}net
Ooh – the Nordic blend sounds yummy!
I follow Grounds4Change and Pure Natural Diva on Twitter @cezovski
I posted this on my blog #1
http://carolsbloggys.blogspot.com/2008/10/contests-from-our-bloggy-friends.html
Please delete one of the “i posted on blog” entries — I didn’t think it had been posted the first time, but it had.
I want Equinox Blend
I’d love to try: Solstice Blend
French blend roast sounds great!! Thanks for the chance.
mogrill@comcast.net
I subscribe.
tweeted http://twitter.com/cdziuba/status/5420446928
I like this blend: C216-8 Agate Pass (8oz)
[Whole Bean Coffee]
Here is my Facebook update about your giveaway: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/profile.php?id=752204468&ref=nf
I became a Fan of Pure Natural Diva & Grounds For Change on Facebook – Carol P Dziuba
Blogged entry 1 http://ceeceeblogger.blogspot.com/2009/11/pure-natural-diva-3-pack-full-size.html
Blogged entry 2 http://ceeceeblogger.blogspot.com/2009/11/pure-natural-diva-3-pack-full-size.html
Follow @purenaturaldiva & @grounds4change on twitter cdziuba
I just subscribed.
denise_22315 (at) yahoo (dot) com
The Nordic blend sounds good to me.
denise_22315 (at) yahoo (dot) com
Nordic blend with cherry – yum
I am a subscriber!
Tricia Andrews