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Here is Equal Exchange's description in coffee-ese of its Organic Breakfast Blend:

Post-Roast Blend: Medium and French Roasts
Aroma: vanilla, pecans, syrupy
Flavor: balanced, sweet, baked brownie
Mouthfeel: dense and expansive
Acidity: gentle and refined
Aftertaste: sweet, roasted cocoa nibs

Equal Exchange's Breakfast Blend comes predominantly from two cooperatives, one in Nicaragua and one in Peru. Below are profiles of CECOCAFEN in Nicaragua and of CACVRA in Peru:

In 1997, with the aid of international financial organizations and the contributions of local farmers, the Organization of Northern Coffee Cooperatives, CECOCAFEN was founded to promote and sell its members' coffee. Initially, the organization devoted itself to strengthening its internal organization and studying the experiences of other Nicaraguan coffee organizations in order to create their own vision: a cooperative business with a social character and economically profitable. Today, CECOCAFEN joins together 1,900 coffee farmers and exports more than 4 million pounds per year of its members' coffee.

CECOCAFEN has spent considerable effort to improve coffee quality. With a mix of loans, grants, and their own funds generated from Fair Trade revenues, CECOCAFEN purchased a coffee-processing facility, SolCafé, in May 1999. The members are now owners of the mill, allowing them to process the coffee, control for quality, and increase the incomes of their members. Careful attention has also been taken to improve the quality of the work environment. Workers at SolCafé are paid competitive wages and workplace health and safety is of paramount concern.

Recently, CECOCAFEN launched an exciting, new ecotourism project which will generate additional income for the farming families, educate visitors about coffee production and Fair Trade, and foster an increased awareness and protection of their natural resources.


CACVRA, the Agrarian Coffee Cooperative of the Apurimac River Valley, was formed in 1969 to market coffee for small-scale farmers in Peru.

In the 1980s, the co-op and surrounding communities in the remote Apurimac Valley were severely impacted by the social and political conflict occurring in Peru’s Ayacucho Province. Within the last several years, CACVRA has recovered to re-establish strong export volumes of coffee, and has also become a significant producer and exporter of organic cacao to international markets.

The co-op now consists of close to 1,600 members and sells 100% of its cacao through the Fair Trade system. CACVRA has invested substantial resources into cultivating and marketing cacao of the highest quality.


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