The start of summer gives the Peace Coffee crew more chances to be out and about promoting Fair Trade. As described in this issue of Fair Grounds, you'll find us serving up our tasty brew at the Midwest Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Fair, the Green Man Festival, and at our own Open House. Also in this issue, Melanee reminisces about her recent trip to Ethiopia, Monika Firl introduces us to the Nicaraguan national pastime, and we provide an update on the Aceh Tsunami Relief Fund. All that plus a new trivia question and recipe make for a full and interesting edition. Settle back and read on...

(Back to Headlines)

by Melanee Meegan, Peace Coffee Marketing & Advertising Coordinator

Mid-winter at staff meetings, talk of farmer visits comes up on our agenda list. Peace Coffee has a rotating travel program, which gives all of its employees an opportunity to visit the coffee growers we buy from. We visit several farmer partners every year, although sometimes several years pass between visits to some of the coops further away. It had been three years since Peace Coffee Roaster TJ Semanchin visited the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, OCFCU, in Ethiopia. Since his visit, the coop has more than quadrupled its coffee production and its membership has gone from 23,000 to 68,000. At the end of March this year, two other Midwestern coffee roasters, Jody and Chris of Higher Grounds in Michigan, and I departed on a trip to Ethiopia to witness this incredible growth and to see Fair Trade premiums at work with our own eyes. As fate would have it, we saw a lot more than just coffee!

More...

(Back to Headlines)

PPKGO, ForesTrade and CV Trimaju

The Aceh Tsunami Relief Fund has made a complete shift to supporting the reconstruction of local community infrastructure in the coffee-growing Gayo Highland region. In late April, the local implementing organizations PPKGO and CV Trimaju created a summary plan for priority rebuilding projects in 20 villages that suffered physical losses during the devastating earthquake of December 2004 and subsequent aftershocks. An itemized budget was prepared containing specific locations, projects undertaken, and estimated costs per item. The following projects were identified with a total budget allocation of Rp 2.513 billion (about US $271,231):

1. Rebuilding of 15 structurally-damaged mosques
2. Repair of 7 community water supply systems
3. Reconstruction of 11 village menasahs (Islamic religious schools)
4. Rehabilitation of 10 local coffee processing facilities
5. Rehabilitation of approximately 10 hectares of coffee farms with soil erosion losses
6. Repair of damaged housing in all 20 villages

Reconstruction activities have begun in most of the communities. However, only the highest priority work is underway as the 2004-2005 coffee harvest has still continued through the last two months.

more...

(Back to Headlines)

by Monika Firl, Coop Coffees

One thing we noticed in Maltagapa, Nicaragua, during our recent visit were groups of kids playing baseball in the streets. It came as no surprise to us when Pedro Haslam, the general manager of the CECOCAFEN Coop, told us that baseball is the number one sport in the country, and this year the Indigenas de Maltagapa have a real shot at winning the National Series. Unfortunately because of the coffee crisis, local residents do not have the means to pay for pricey tickets to support their team. So local sports activist went out looking for funds! Cooperative Coffees members like Peace Coffee pitched in to pay for the team uniforms, travel expenses and maintenance. The team is doing great. They currently lead the National Series with 7 wins and 2 losses. And they are packing the stadium with fans!

(Back to Headlines)

Conserve Energy!
For the fourth year in a row Peace Coffee will be serving up cups of Joe at the Midwest Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Fair June 17th-19th, 2005, in Custer, WI (7 miles east of Stevens Point). Each year thousands of people from around the world celebrate the summer solstice at MREA's Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Fair. This three-day festival is the world's largest venue to learn about renewable energy, energy efficiency, and sustainable living. For more info visit www.the-mrea.org

Music, Sport & Bike Blender Drinks
Peace Coffee will also be serving up coffee smoothies via a bike powered blender at the Green Man Festival in Duluth, MN July 15-17th. This will be our first time attending Green Man but we are sure that it is a perfect event fit. The Green Man Festival is committed to being the most environmentally-friendly outdoor music festival on the planet. Last year they recycled and composted 80% of the waste produced, this year they are shooting for 90%.

This years national music acts include the likes of the Cowboy Junkies and Violent Femmes, paired alongside great local musicians like Mason Jennings and Jerree Small (just to name a few). There will also be competitive mountain bike races on the ski mountain where all of the fun takes place. For more information and to purchase tickets visit www.greenmanfestival.com

(Back to Headlines)

Think you know a lot about coffee? Then enter our Fair Grounds Trivia Contest. Click here for our question of the month. Entering is easy and it's FUN!

Karen McGowan is the winner of last month's Coffee Knowledge question. She knew that the first commercial espresso machine was manufactured in Italy in 1905. This year marks its hundredth anniversary! Congratulations, Karen!

(Back to Headlines)

“Do not vacillate or you will be left in between doing something, having something and being nothing.”

-- Ethiopian proverb

(Back to Headlines)

• May 2005 Fair Trade in Seattle by Scott Patterson, Brad's Nicaragua Journal by Brad the Bike Messenger
• April 2005 Fair Trade Travels and Other Adventures, Nicaragua Trip Brings Fair Trade to Life by Anneka Kmiecik, Birchwood Café, Fair Trade in a Volatile Market by Bill Harris, Cooperative Coffees
• March 2005 Andy's Chiapas Journal (part two) by Andy Lambert, Converging For Fair Trade
• February 2005 Update On The Aceh Fund, Return To Chiapas (part one) by Andy Lambert, In Praise Of Hot Chocolate by Rachel Hiltsley
• January 2005 Tragedy's Wake: Update From Sumatra, How I Spent My Floating Holiday by Brad the Bike Messenger, A Coffee Science Experiment by Rachel Hiltsley, Resident Equipment Expert
• December 2004 Great Coffee the French Press Way, The Best Coffee in Town, Coffee+Beer=Friggin' Good. eh? 
• November 2004 My Other Bike is a Biodiesel, Biodiesel: It's What's Inside
• October 2004 A Peaceful Alternative to Petroleum, Don't Just Do It. Do It With Justice 
• September 2004 Santa Anita de la Union, The Beauty of the St. Paul Classic
• August 2004 Crema Café: Home of Sonny's Ice Cream,
• July 2004 Exploring Our Origins: Ethiopia
• June 2004 Journey through the Life of a Bean
• May 2004 Report from Colombia and Brad 's Big Bike Adventure
• April 2004 Nicaragua: Coffee and the Community at CECOCAFEN
• March 2004 Fair Trade Friends: United Students for Fair Trade
• February 2004 Mut Vitz and APECAFORMM Trip Reports
• January 2004 10 Good Things about a Bad Year
• December 2003 Global Exchange Fair Trade Challenge
• November 2003 Barriers to Fair Trade: NAFTA on Steroids
• October 2003 Dia de Los Muertos
• September 2003 Report from Cancun: Victory for Fair Trade
• August 2003 Fair Trade Friends: Oxfam America
• July 2003 Exploring Our Origins: Sumatra

(Back to Headlines)

Fair Grounds is produced by:
Cooperative Coffees

Contact Information:

Orders and General Information
Phone - 612.870.3440 or 1.888.324.7872 
Fax - 612-677-3989
E-Mail - info@peacecoffee.com
Web - http://www.peacecoffee.com

Peace Coffee Crew*:
Anna Canning
Beth Backen
Rachel Hiltsley
Andy Lambert
Melanee Meegan
Michelle Ramier
Jamie Schumacher
TJ Semanchin
Scott Patterson

*We work together to get the coffee out to our customers. Although we have specific job titles, we all take turns switching roles and putting in time where it's needed most.

Peace Coffee Bikers*:
Brad Wilson

*Our bikers pack a mean trailer full of coffee. They are speedy as speedy gets. Watch out, when they are on the street, they mean business!

Fair Grounds is designed by:

Starstruck Design
335 West Gill Road
Gill, MA 01376

Contact Information:
Don Kruger 
Lynn Nichols
Phone - 413.863.7752
Fax - 413-863-7752 
Web - http://www.starstruckdesign.com

You are receiving your Fair Grounds e-newsletter because you told us you wanted to get it, or a good friend of yours suggested to us that you would like to get it. If you like it, let us know. If you want to suggest ways that we can make it better, let us know. Our e-mail is info@peacecoffee.com

If you would like to unsubscribe to the Fair Grounds E-Newsletter because:
- You may have more than one e-mail address on our list.
- Your e-mail address may have changed.
- You're going on a six month visit of Latin American Coffee Cooperatives (Take us with you).
- or any other reason
simply send an e-mail to: newsletter-off@peacecoffee.com and put your e-mail address in the subject line. 

Remember, you are always welcome to visit our website at http://www.peacecoffee.com