Fair Trade Coffee Beans (Ground)

Ground coffee loses noticeable aroma within one to two weeks of opening because grinding vastly increases the surface area exposed to oxygen. If your machine requires grounds, buy small bags with a printed roast date and finish them quickly rather than stocking up.

Fairtrade certification guarantees a minimum price floor plus a community-development premium, historically 20 cents per pound for coffee, with buyers paying the market rate whenever it exceeds the floor. The premium funds things like schools and processing equipment chosen by the producer cooperative.

No, Fair Trade USA split from the international Fairtrade system at the end of 2011 and runs its own certification with different rules, including certifying larger estates and, later, some non-coffee categories others excluded. Both labels appear on US coffee bags, so check which one your bag carries if the distinction matters to you.

Equal Exchange, a worker-owned cooperative founded in 1986, is the most widely stocked fair trade ground coffee in US groceries. Allegro, Whole Foods' in-house roaster, and co-op brands like Larry's Coffee also offer fair trade ground lines for drip machines and pods.