User:Georgefondue/Ethical Bean Coffee

Ethical Bean Coffee is a Canadian-owned Fairtrade Certified and  Organic Certified Coffee Roaster located in Vancouver, BC. It was founded in 2003 by Lloyd Bernhardt and Kim Schachte. Ethical Bean Coffee is now one of the largest 100% Fairtrade Certified Organic coffee roasters in Canada.

History
In 2003, Lloyd Bernhardt and Kim Schachte founded Ethical Bean Coffee after a trip to Guatemala to adopt their daughter. They wanted to make a positive change in the lives of coffee farmers in Guatemala, so they started what was then known as The Ethical Bean Coffee Company Inc.

In line with it’s mandate to help farmers in coffee growing communities, the company only roasts 100% Fairtrade Certified and 100% Organic Certified coffee. To this date they have paid over $1.4 million in Fairtrade Premiums, and donate $20,000 a year in total to  Child-Aid’s FUNDIT Program, which has been renamed the Ethical Bean Scholarship Fund, and to Project Somos Children’s Village to help abandoned and orphaned children in Guatemala.

Their coffee line-up was streamlined and their branding was updated in 2010. The new packaging incorporated a zip seal for extended freshness, and they adopted a traceability system, which includes a unique  QR code on the back of each bag.

In 2010, the company had their coffee chosen as one of Oprah’s Favourite Things in O Magazine.

They faced a recycling backlash in 2010 regarding their proposed incineration of their foil lined bags, and have now instituted a bag-return program until they find an alternate solution to foil lined bags that maintains freshness and shelf life.

The company retails mainly in Canada and the US markets, and supply office coffee and food service coffee across British Columbia.

Sustainability
One of the company mandates is to leave a small footprint. Their Head Office, Café and Roasting Facilities are green energy powered, supplied by Bullfrog Power. They are carbon neutral. Since April 2010 the company has been a certified B Corporation member. Their audit score is 127/200. Ethical Bean Coffee has 2 Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations located at its headquarters for public use.

Traceability
In 2010 the company instituted a traceability program with which consumers could trace the  supply chain from who and where the coffee was grown, to its  third party certifications, to why and who chose the coffee and who roasted it via a unique QR code on the back of each bag. The QR code can be read with the free Ethical Bean Coffee iPhone app, or a generic QR code reader, or customers can input the lot number into the company’s website and get the same information. Ethical Bean Coffee is the first coffee company to utilize this level of transparency in their business practices.

Coffee Products
Since 2004 Aaron DeLazzer has been Ethical Bean Coffee’s Director of Coffee. He is Canada’s first Certified Q-Grader, and sources and cups all coffee beans for quality and taste.

Whole Bean Coffee

 * Bold – Dark Roast
 * Classic – Medium Roast
 * Decaf – Medium Dark Roast – Chemical-free Water Process Decaffeination
 * Exotic – Medium Roast
 * Lush – Medium Dark Roast
 * Mellow – Medium Roast
 * Sweet Espresso – Dark Roast
 * Rocket Fuel – French Roast

Ground Coffee

 * Bold – Dark Roast
 * Classic – Medium Roast
 * Decaf – Medium Dark Roast - Chemical-free Water Process Decaffeination
 * Lush – Medium Dark Roast
 * Rocket Fuel – French Roast

Certifications

 * Fairtrade
 * Organic (QAI and USDA Organic)
 * B Corporation
 * Kosher
 * HACCP
 * Climate Smart

Community Involvement
Ethical Bean Coffee was pivotal in making the University of British Columbia the first Fair Trade Campus in Canada by being their commercial fairtrade coffee supplier. They also supply coffee to Simon Fraser University who became a Fair Trade Campus in 2012. Every year Ethical Bean Coffee donates a portion of their proceeds to two Guatemalan Charities. Child-Aid’s FUNDIT program, now called the Ethical Bean Coffee Scolarship Program, and to Project Somos Children’s Village. A Vancouver charity set up to help orphaned and abandoned children. The company also donates to local charities, including Union Gospel Mission.