Benbows - Direct Trade And Fine Estate Coffees

Direct trade:

Partnering with farmers has allowed us to provide higher premiums to insure that workers receive better benefits as well as insuring that money is available for infrastructure projects and sustainable practices.

To ensure that our customers get only the finest estate coffees grown, we convey our needs to our farmers well in advance of their planting. This provides a direct outlet for their crop and higher premiums set in advance. These premiums go far beyond Fair Trade and provide resources for crop quality controls, promotion of sustainability, increased workers wages and living conditions and help in creating a viable community.

Volume and transportation are the biggest obstacles. Direct trade demands that large quantities of coffee be moved at the same time. Although we have arranged for direct trading with some incredible farms, there are other wonderful coffees which we need help in procuring international trading arrangements. For those, we have partnered with a broker whose interests directly match ours. Their first concern is the quality of the bean. To this end they reserve resources to help farmers maintain the integrity of their farms. In addition, their expertise allows them to aid farmers in achieving certification that often set apart their crops. I.e.: “Organic” – “Rainforest Alliance”. Whether we are dealing with Direct Trade Estates or with our broker securing Direct Trade Crops, we seek to provide premiums to the farms and farmers who have the same passion we have for incredible coffee.