Throughout Thanksgiving Coffee’s evolution as a company, the Katzeff’s have continued their committment to only sourcing fair trade certified coffee.

Angell Organic Candy Bars is the brainchild of husband-and-wife founders Christopher and Suzanne Angell. The couple has spent the last few years sorting out how they can blend the highest quality ingredients, commit to sustainable production, and find a competitive price point

Fair trade has long been a standard for consumers in Europe. And now with Ben & Jerry’s pledge to source all of its ingredients from fair trade certified producers by 2013, the United States will become a larger market for fair trade goods. And it should. One group of farmers who benefit from fair trade is banana growers

Two hundred miles west of Uganda’s capital, Kampala, lies Fort Portal. Surrounded by crater lakes, dramatic mountains, and large forests, Fort Portal’s people rely on subsistence agriculture and raising livestock. Jobs are scarce in this town of 46,000. Fair trade, however, promises to provide more opportunity in this lush region.

Greenopolis, a site to which I occasionally contribute, released this interview with Ben & Jerry. It was great having Greenopolis there—they have over a million visitors a month and this interview captures the spirit of the boys of Burlington who did good.

For workers who grow coffee, raise bananas, cut roses, and process cocoa pods abroad, fair trade has made a huge difference in their lives. What was once seen as a way to plunge into guilt-free indulgence has now blossomed into a movement that has seen Fair Trade Certified products find their way into over 50,000 retail stores.

Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are just as feisty, irreverent, and enthusiastic about their company and beliefs 32 years later. Ben & Jerry’s is still the CSR model. The push for Fair Trade ingredients makes the iconic company even more relevant.

Why does Fair Trade matter? Paying a slight premium for goods from cotton to bananas to coffee ensures that farmers get a decent price for their crops; that their kids go to school and they have access to credit; and middlemen, who often exploited these farmers, are cut out of the picture.