Our Story
Fairness to farmers. A closer connection between people and the farmers we all rely on.
This was the essence of the vision that the three Equal Exchange founders — Jonathan Rosenthal, Michael Rozyne, and Rink Dickinson — held in their minds and hearts as they stood together on a metaphorical cliff back in 1986.
The three, who had met each other as managers at a New England food co-op, were part of a movement to transform the relationship between the public and food producers. At the time, however, these efforts didn't extend to farmers outside of the U.S.
The founders decided to meet once a week — and did so for three years — to discuss how best to change the way food is grown, bought, and sold around the world.
At the end of this time they had a plan for a new organization called Equal Exchange that would be:
- A social change organization that would help farmers and their families gain more control over their economic futures.
- A group that would educate consumers about trade issues affecting farmers.
- A provider of high-quality foods that would nourish the body and the soul.
- A company that would be controlled by the people who did the actual work.
- A community of dedicated individuals who believed that honesty, respect, and mutual benefit are integral to any worthwhile endeavor.
Café Nica: "The Forbidden Coffee"
They chose Nicaraguan coffee — which they called Café Nica — as the first Equal Exchange product for a few reasons. In 1986, the Reagan administration imposed an embargo on all products from Nicaragua’s Sandinista government. Importing coffee beans from Nicaragua would demonstrate solidarity with the fledgling people's movement and would challenge U.S. trade policies.
Equal Exchange brought Nicaraguan coffee into the U.S. through a loophole in the law. If the coffee was roasted in another country, it could be regarded as a product from that country, and therefore legally imported into the U.S. A friendly Dutch alternative trade organization stepped forward to offer assistance with the brokering and roasting.
Alerted to this symbolic action, the Reagan administration tried to stop the tiny organization. Officials seized Equal Exchange’s Nicaraguan coffee as soon as it arrived in the port of Boston. During their first two years of business, the founders spent many days, with trade lawyers at their side, doing battle with customs officials. Each time the coffee cargo was released it was a small victory.
In 1988, the Office of Foreign Assets Control threatened to close the loophole, and Equal Exchange’s founders launched a campaign against the move. Local and national congressmen, such as Rep. Joe Moakley and his dynamic assistant Jim McGovern, provided critical help alongside a groundswell of grassroots support. The result was a victory that made it clear that Equal Exchange wasn’t going away. Now Rink, Jonathan, and Michael — and a few new members of the Equal Exchange worker-cooperative — could focus all of their efforts on building their alternative business.
Coffee
Since day one back in 1986, Equal Exchange’s coffee has focused on farmers first. That means we pay a guaranteed price, offer farmers financing, and form direct and long-standing collaborative relationships. This has allowed us and our partners to grow into amazing democratic businesses, influential in local and regional economies. Our coffee embodies our collective beliefs in sustainability and human dignity. No surprise why it tastes so good.