Cincinnati Wild Oats Wins Fair Trade Month Retail Display Contest
Maryland Man Wins Fair Trade Month Consumer Sweepstakes

Winners Headed for Costa Rican Fair Trade Certified Coffee & Cocoa Co-ops and Eco-Tour

Oakland, CA (January 31, 2007) - In celebration of Fair Trade Month last October, TransFair USA held a retail display contest and consumer sweepstakes. Entrants for the display contest were judged by an independent panel from Big Idea Marketing, based on creativity, visibility, consumer education and the number of Fair Trade Certified™ products. Demo Coordinator Cathy Eubanks from Wild Oats in Cincinnati, Ohio won the retail display contest. Alan Brooks from Frederick, Maryland won the consumer contest, thanks to an email sent by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters informing him of the contest. Twenty additional runners-up won baskets, provided by World of Good, filled with Fair Trade Certified products.*

The two grand prize winners will be accompanied by TransFair USA staff for an 8-day trip for two to Costa Rica, March 25th to April 1st. The group will visit Fair Trade coffee and cocoa co-ops to see first hand how Fair Trade has transformed these communities, tour the Tirimbina Reserve and La Paz Waterfall Gardens, whitewater raft the Sarapaqui River and get plenty of beach time at Playa Cahuita.

The Winners

When Cathy Eubanks heard she'd won the Discover Fair Trade retail display contest, she was pleased. "I thought it would just be a t-shirt or something." When she realized the prize was an 8-day tour of Costa Rica, she "was shocked!"

Cathy first learned about Fair Trade from her job at the Wild Oats store in Cincinnati, where she has worked since it opened six years ago. As the trainer for new employees, she has plenty of opportunities to share her enthusiasm for Fair Trade. "I love talking about Fair Trade - it's one of the best things Wild Oats does."

Cathy often shows new employees a short video about Fair Trade, and one story has particularly stuck with her. "The video shows a coffee farmer who says that before they had Fair Trade certification, they always ate tortillas and salt. But now, with Fair Trade, they always have enough money for rice and beans. It's inspiring - the fact that for such a small difference in price, we can really change people's lives for the better."

In honor of Fair Trade Month, Cathy's store director asked her to build the display because she knew how passionate Cathy felt about Fair Trade.

"When I was building the display, I was amazed at how Fair Trade has grown and how many Fair Trade products Wild Oats carries," she said. Wild Oats set up the Discover Fair Trade display in the café area of their store, where they have a booming lunch business.

"We received very good reactions for our Fair Trade Month display," said Cathy. "A lot of people who did not know about Fair Trade asked what it was all about, just from seeing the display. People who saw it learned something."

Cathy has never been to Costa Rica before and she is most excited to see a rainforest for the first time. But, she said, "I'm not looking forward to seeing any snakes!"

"At Wild Oats, we believe it is our responsibility to ensure the people who grow and manufacture our products are treated fairly and equitably," said Simon Cutts, bulk foods manager for Wild Oats. "By helping to educate consumers about the Fair Trade movement, and by making a commitment to selling only organic, Fair Trade coffee in our bulk and foodservice departments, we are not only bolstering the socioeconomic stature of these farmers, but we are also helping to preserve the environment by supporting sustainable agriculture."

Consumer sweepstakes winner Alan Brooks entered the Discover Fair Trade sweepstakes after receiving an email from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, whose Fair Trade Certified coffee he often purchases. "I don't enter too many sweepstakes because it just generates solicitations," he said. "But I like the Fair Trade organization [TransFair USA], and I didn't think it would be likely to generate anything negative by entering. I certainly didn't expect to win anything though!"

Alan learned about Fair Trade by seeing the label in Common Market, his local health food store in Frederick, Maryland. "I have always liked the idea of Fair Trade. It's sad to see that the people who do all the work don't always get paid enough. I don't mind spending a bit more for something if the money is going to help someone living in poor conditions, rather than make some rich corporation richer."

The trip will be Alan's first venture outside of the United States, and he's been busy applying for his passport. As a plant lover, Alan is also thrilled to see his first rainforest. "I have a master's degree in botany and I've never been to a tropical area, so it will be interesting to see what the plants are really like outside of a greenhouse."

The Co-ops
Organized in 1969 by 40 small-scale coffee farmers, the Sarapiqui coffee co-op has grown to include about 375 farmers, and is a member of COOCAFE – a consortium of 3,500 small-scale coffee farmers in nine independent co-ops throughout Costa Rica. COOCAFE is one of the most established Fair Trade co-ops in the world, and remains actively committed to improving the lives of its members and their families through a variety of social programs and entrepreneurial opportunities. Among many projects, Fair Trade sales have enabled COOCAFE to establish the Hijos del Campo (Children of the Countryside) foundation, which provides 1,502 student scholarships and funds 224 local schools. Through its environmental programs, COOCAFE has converted approximately 1,200 acres of coffee to organic production and reforested nearly 14,000 acres of land. The co-op's non-profit organization, Foundation Café Forestal, has funded the construction of water tanks and natural erosion barriers.

Founded in 1987, the APPTA cocoa co-op (Association of Small Producers of Talamanca) has a membership of 1,100 cocoa farmers, 27 percent of whom are women. Home to 65 percent of Costa Rica's indigenous population and nine ecological life zones, the Talamanca is an important part of the Caribbean Biological Corridor, a conservation area that connects the mountains of La Amistad Biosphere Reserve with the Caribbean coast. The co-op remains committed to protecting its surrounding environment through sustainable farming practices, and agronomists work directly with co-op members to assist them in implementing organic cultivation and crop diversification programs. In addition, co-op members plant shade trees, not only to protect the land and local wildlife, but also for medicinal purposes and building materials.

About TransFair USA
TransFair USA, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization, is one of nineteen members of Fairtrade Labeling Organizations International (FLO), and the only independent, third-party certifier of Fair Trade products in the United States. It audits transactions between U.S. companies offering Fair Trade Certified™ products and the international suppliers from whom they source, in order to guarantee that the farmers and farm workers behind Fair Trade Certified goods were paid a fair, above-market price. In addition, annual inspections conducted by FLO ensure that strict socioeconomic development criteria are being met using increased Fair Trade revenues. For more information visit www.transfairusa.org.

* Fair Trade Certified products for the runners-up gift baskets were generously provided by DiLusso Bakery, Dagoba Chocolates, Javatree Coffee, Theo Chocolates, Fog Woman Coffee, De La Paz Coffee, Tony's Coffee & Tea, Tempest Tea, Equal Exchange, Alter Eco, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Honest Tea, First Colony Coffee and Millstone.