Fair Trade | Littleton Food Co-op

Mother’s Day Gift Guide

April 29, 2025 By Anastasia Maher

It’s no secret that all the mothers in our lives deserve something nice this Mother’s Day. But parents spend 18+ years providing for their children, meaning sometimes it’s hard to let go and let themselves be treated special for once. But that just means they deserve a gift to show your appreciation even more! Have you seen those restaurants out there that have named menu items based on cliches that kids say when you ask them what they want to eat? A hot dog and french fries might be called “I Don’t Know,” and an “I’m Not Hungry” consists of penne pasta and sauce. We’ve adapted that idea below for Mother’s Day. Use what the mothers in your life say they want for Mother’s Day to select from one of the options below. And remember, we’re going to look beyond the superficial words being said here. For instance:

“Oh, I don’t need anything special.”

This mom doesn’t want to be the center of attention or have a big fuss made that upsets a Sunday routine. And they likely don’t want more physical products to try to make space for in the house. Hot take: sometimes giving someone a “special Mother’s Day” vase, jewelry box, tchotchke, etc is actually more of a burden than a gift. You’re saying now I have another ~thing~ in my space that I didn’t get to pick out AND I can never throw away without a lifetime of guilt?? Instead of elaborate plans or unnecessary products, focus on enhancing the routine they already have. Consider:

Local Coffee. Start mom’s day with an extra special cup of joe. Local coffee tastes best because not only are our local producers focused on craft and quality over mass production, it’s a gift that directly supports your community. Moms have enough to worry about in life – take one worry away by gifting ethically-sourced, environmentally-responsible coffee beans. And hey, get ground beans – don’t make them do any more than required.

Trail mix or energy bites from the Bulk Department. A mother on the go can never get enough protein-packed fuel to get through the day. And whether you’re a spouse, child, family member, or co-worker, let’s be honest here: you’re one of the reasons their energy is depleting. It’s only fair that you give a boost.

Littleton Co-op gift card. There’s bound to be SOMETHING a mom needs at the Littleton Co-op! Let mom decide with a gift card to their favorite local grocery store. And even better: give the gift of a solo shopping trip. Sometimes, even better than a bottle of wine paid for with a gift card is the opportunity to stand in the wine aisle deciding for as long as you want; no screaming kids, no impatient partner, just pure grocery store bliss. Purchase Gift Card Online.

“My favorite gift is spending time with you.”

Gift giving and receiving is not everyone’s “love language” and that’s totally okay! Quality time might mean more to mom than the most expensive gift money could buy. But let’s face it: an excursion or day out on the town can add up fast. But hanging out at home watching TV doesn’t really separate Mother’s Day from a regular Tuesday. Consider purchasing something to center your quality time around, such as:

Co-op Puzzle. The ultimate rainy day activity! The worst thing would be making mom feel frustrated, which is why the Co-op puzzle is an achievable 375 pieces. Cooperate with mom to assemble a collage of some of our favorite cooperative moments. This is great to spark conversations about your favorite foods, memories from the past fifteen years, and memorable times working on a team.

King Arthur Baking Mix. Get your hands dirty with mom in the kitchen this Mother’s Day! Not only do you get to enjoy the activity of baking something savory or sweet together, but then you get the secondary experience of enjoying your creation together. If home baking is not your strong suit, King Arthur Baking mixes make the process much easier. And you know all the ingredients will be top-notch. Plus, the King Arthur Baking headquarters is a short drive away in Norwich, VT – road trip with mom!

NH travel cribbage board. This isn’t just your standard cribbage board. These handcrafted wooden sets from Maine are carved with White Mountains inspired images on the board and pegs. Mom will feel touched that you went the extra mile to customize a board for the two of you to play together; meanwhile, all the work you have to do is pick it up from the Co-op.

“Whatever you want to give me.”

Okay, that’s great, mom. What I want to give you is an all expenses paid tropical vacation, one million dollars, and a break from carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders, but that’s not realistic for multiple reasons so could you give me some guidance here? Moms who say something along these lines just don’t want to be a burden; but, that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t appreciate a token of affection. If a tropical vacation is out of your budget, focus on smaller gifts that can give mom those same feelings of a calm and stress-free life. Consider these options:

Locally-made soap. In our completely unbiased opinion, our local soap makers are the best! The artistry that goes into the flavor design and physical crafting of our local soap selection is exactly the kind of thing a mother will appreciate. And that’s not even including getting to use it and experience a lather of love.

Specialty Cheese accessories. Of course, Mom (or anybody really!) would appreciate a selection of cheeses from the Specialty Cheese island. But it can be difficult to gift perishable items (especially in the warmer months when we can’t use the back porch as a secondary refrigerator lol). But the Specialty Cheese Department also has a number of high quality non-perishable crackers, jams, spreads, and other “accessories” that would pair well with any cheese or other food of mom’s choosing.

Aromatherapy tools. I don’t think anyone knows a mother who is “too relaxed” or “gets plenty of sleep.” Help all the moms treat themselves with lotions, masks, bath add-ins, oils, and more from the Wellness Department. Many brands offer tools to focus on various areas of wellness, but you can never go wrong with anything targeting sleep or relaxation. Bonus points for knowing mom’s favorite scent!

Fair Trade at the Co-op

October 1, 2019 By Littleton Food Co-op

October is Fair Trade Month at the Littleton Food Co-op and around the world. Here at the store, we are encouraging all shoppers to consider making a fair trade purchase this month. Many of your long-time favorite brands, such as Annie’s, Kashi, HiBall Energy, Larabar, Honest Tea, Taza Chocolate, and more have fair trade certified products. Other brands, like Equal Exchange and Tony’s Chocolonely, were started with the ideas behind fair trade firmly woven into their business plan. Even some well known national brands have started making progress towards joining the fair trade movement. Producer support is very important, but an equally important ingredient in the success of fair trade is you, the consumers.

Fair Trade is the idea that all members involved in a food system are treated equitably. A company can put a fair trade symbol on their product(s) after being certified by one of many independent trade organizations. There are two popular requirements that third party verifiers require.

The first is that all producers are paid a fair price for their contributions. This is especially prevalent in the coffee industry, where the price of coffee has been steadily declining for years, meaning farmers have a low and unpredictable income. In fair trade situations, farmers are paid a fair trade premium for their products, which creates a guaranteed income and frees up money for things like electricity, running water and education.

The other requirement is not using slave labor or child labor. Slave labor and child is a major issue in the chocolate industry with the harvesting of cacao. In order for farmers to meet the extremely high cacao demands, and for families to earn extra income, children are often forced to do the dangerous harvest work. Children and adults can also be tied to hard labor because of debt, creating situations referred to as modern day slavery.

Along with a number of other requirements, organizations who want to be certified fair trade must pay a fair trade premium and not use child labor or slave labor. These inhumane conditions have been around since these industries began. The large-scale fair trade movement picked-up at the turn of the century, but has still not become “the norm.”

However, what has come from the fair trade movement so far is more consumer awareness of foods’ value chains and the emergence of new companies who have started making advancements in ending such poor conditions. We still have a long way to go to complete fair trade, though. Third-party certificates have too many loopholes and transparency won’t solve such complex issues as modern slavery, but raising awareness of the issue is the first step in improving our global food systems.

As shoppers at the Littleton Food Co-op, you have the power to show your support through your spending. We hope you take advantage of your power this October in honor of Fair Trade Month, and continue to shop with a purpose through the rest of the year.

6 Brands with A Fair Trade Story to Tell

July 29, 2019 By Anastasia Maher

If you’re looking to become a more conscientious consumer, specifically when it comes to fair trade products, you’re in luck: many of your favorite brands at the Co-op are already fair trade certified! What does this mean? Fair trade is when producers pay what is considered a “fair” price to the farmers they work with. This above and beyond amount, which is known as the “fair trade premium,” can then be used to improve the livelihood of the farmers–things like electricity, running water, and education suddenly become accessible. Fair Trade USA is one of the many organizations that certifies that a product can put a fair trade symbol on their packaging. Here are 6 brands sold at the Co-op with products certified by Fair Trade USA:

1. Annie’s

Read more about Annie’s mission to use sustainably sourced cocoa

2. Pacific Foods

Read how Pacific Foods is part of ethical supply chain

3. HiBall Energy

Watch and tag along with the founders of HiBall Energy on a trip to see where their fair trade sugar originates

4. Kashi

Learn more about how Kashi sources their cocoa responsibility

5. I Heart Keenwah

See what happened when the co-founder of I Heart Keenwah saw the effects of fair trade up close

6. Larabar

Read about Larabar’s trip that deepened their appreciation for fair trade practices

All of these brands use fair trade practices according to Fair Trade USA. To see the full list of products verified by Fair Trade USA, visit their website.

Sip on Fair Trade

July 22, 2019 By Anastasia Maher

Last week, we highlighted the prevalence of slave labor in the chocolate industry and some companies who are forging the path away from inhumane working conditions. While slavery in chocolate is perhaps the most famous un-just food system, similar hardships and ethical conundrums pop-up across food group lines. Luckily, there are similar companies using their buying power through fair trade to change human conditions around the world. This week, we take a look at beverages making a difference.

To many American homes, coffee is a staple; however, a world of complexity lives behind the grounds. Coffee is an extremely volatile industry whose prices tend to slope down rather than up. Fairtrade organizations stepped in to ensure farmers “receive a fair and stable price for their coffee that covers average costs of sustainable production.” On the consumer side that might be hard to believe; however, most coffee farmers receive only 2% of their coffee’s retail price. A fair trade premium guarantees that coffee farmers will have an income regardless of the market, and can hopefully use that money for self-improvement. This phenomenon, the goods and the bads, occur across multiple industries that come together to make our favorite drinks. For companies who continue to use slave and child labor, “transparency alone doesn’t solve farmworker issues or issues of modern slavery, but it’s a necessary precondition for addressing these issues” according to the director of the CRS Coffeelands program Michael Sheridan. Another step in the right direction is engaging in fair trade. The following beverage companies have an independent fair trade verification and can be found at the Littleton Food Co-op:

*Similar to chocolate, we sadly can not guarantee that all the beverage options on this list are produced without slave or child labor. We know there are many smaller companies out there who choose not to become verified fair trade organizations even though their practices exceed the requirements. In addition, fair trade verification organizations themselves can be very laissez-faire in the enforcement of ethical farming practices, so many question the validity of a fair trade label. These conversations are leading us down the road towards more humanitarian production methods and trade deals for all industries.

Resources:

http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/en/farmers-and-workers/coffee/about-coffee

https://medium.com/@MarinaTMartinez/coffee-slavery-destruction-and-shortage-c915d430390e

https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/04/13/in-brazils-coffee-industry-some-workers-face-conditions-analogous-to-slavery/

https://foodispower.org/our-food-choices/coffee/

The Sweetest Chocolate

July 17, 2019 By Anastasia Maher

All chocolate is sweet. Yes, sometimes there’s sea salt or a hearty nut involved, or a bitter aftertaste, but the overwhelming amount of chocolate can be lumped into the “sweet” category. So how do you get sweeter than sweet? You make it through fair trade processes and without slave labor.

Slave labor is considered to be any labor that invokes a human rights violation. Unfortunately, this burden often falls on one of the most vulnerable populations: low-income children. Sometimes, it initiates from a malicious place, but other times it comes from a place of desperation of families wanting to create a better life and farmers needing to cut costs because of the low price of cocoa. No matter the origin, many children spend their adolescence doing hard labor on farms instead of studying in school. The fair trade movement is about correcting this practice through “better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world,” according to the Fairtrade Foundation. Companies can become “certified fair trade” through a selection of independent organizations.

When most people discuss unethical labor and practices in the chocolate industry, they are referring to the Ivory Coast of Africa. Ivory Coast farmers supply about 30% of the cocoa beans needed to sustain the world chocolate market. Children here can be paid just 85 cents a day for contributing to a billion dollar industry. While these inhumane conditions have existed since long before any chocolate was sold in stores, large-scale movements to actually do something about it only came into focus around the last turn of the century. The overarching goal of these movements was obviously to eradicate child labor. That goal has sadly not been reached. What has come from this is more consumer awareness of foods’ value chains and the emergence of new chocolate companies who want to lead the way in ending such poor conditions in the Ivory Coast. You may recognize them as the “higher priced brands.” This is because the organizations pay a “fair trade premium” to their farmer partners so they can collaboratively work to end cycles of poverty.

Companies leading the way towards an equitable chocolate industry include:

*We want to take a second to acknowledge the imperfections of this list. First, just because a company is not on this list doesn’t mean they engage in unethical practices. Sometimes, small companies do not have a big enough following to be recognized for their efforts, and/or they choose not to register with a third party organization even though they qualify. Even the large corporations that have become synonymous with child labor in the chocolate industry are setting goals for fairer conditions in the near future. Secondly, these third party certifications have come under fire for their ways of enforcement that allow farmers to easily sidestep an inspection. However, these imperfect systems are raising awareness of this prevalent issue, which is the first step in improving our global food systems.

Some resources to learn more:

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/feb/24/ivory-coast-cocoa-farmers-fairtrade-fortnight-women-farmers-trade-justice

https://blog.equalexchange.coop/child-labor-in-the-cocoa-industry/

https://laborrights.org/in-the-news/was-your-chocolate-produced-using-child-slave-labor

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershey-nestle-mars-chocolate-child-labor-west-africa/?utm_term=.02d92c8e75c9

Cooperatives Grow Communities: Riojana Olive Oil

February 28, 2019 By Littleton Food Co-op

In the town of Arauco in the La Rioja province of Argentina stands the oldest olive tree in the country, planted in the 1600s. Although not native to Argentina, the Arauco olive is highly prized for its buttery smoothness and meaty texture, and for the robust floral and fruity flavor notes it contributes to olive oil.

There, in the Antinaco-Los Colorados Valley, the cooperative producers of Riojana extra virgin, fair trade organic olive oil are cultivating much more than their 350 olive trees. Through cooperation, they are growing a healthy, vibrant and sustainable community.

Reinvesting profits for health and education
La Riojana’s founders came from Italy to Argentina in the 1940s and began cultivating grapes for the production of wine, and planting olive trees as a natural companion plant. Certified fair trade by Fairtrade International in 2006, the members of the cooperative have invested more than $11 million Argentinian pesos (~ $730,000 US), primarily from the sale of their fair trade organic wines, in projects including a new drinking water supply for the village of Tilimuqui, where many of La Riojana’s workers and their families live. The fair trade premium has also been invested in production improvements, new community centers and medical equipment, but the most visible result of the cooperative’s reinvestment in its farmer members and their families can be seen in their commitment to education.

A new secondary school specializing in agriculture opened in Tilimuqui in 2010. Offering free education to children age 13-18, the school has had a profound impact on its community, providing a catalyst for local development, increasing employment by the creation of more than 50 new jobs at the school, and providing training in technical agronomy to help slow the migration of young people to larger cities. Since 2010, enrollment in the school has grown from 33 pupils to more than 300. With plans to build new classrooms, the cooperative hopes to expand the school’s capacity to 600 students in the next few years. The cooperative also provides kits of school supplies to children of its members, as well as free computer courses to adult community members.

Focusing on environment to ensure a bright future
Besides supporting health and education, the cooperative is invested in green initiatives and sustainability, so transitioning more of its growers to become equivalency USDA Certified Organic is another important goal. With a focus on becoming carbon neutral, La Riojana Cooperative is introducing improved water management techniques, the use of solar and bio energy and a reforestation project.

When you purchase Riojana olive oil you are not just purchasing a delicious ingredient to enjoy, you are casting a vote in favor of cooperative, fair trade businesses—and helping more than 422 cooperative members continue to invest in a brighter future.

This article originally appeared on www.strongertogether.coop

Beverage of The Week: Congo Coffee Project

December 13, 2018 By Littleton Food Co-op

Equal Exchange founded the Congo Coffee Project as a means to bring Congolese coffee to market in the United States, and to raise awareness about the alarmingly high rate of sexual violence engendered by the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Through the sale of Congolese coffee, EE has raised more than $80,000 for survivors and the community.

Over the years, the funding has been dedicated to the vocational and skills training program at the Maison Dorcas Center at the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, an aftercare center that supports survivors of sexual violence.

This week, Dr. Denis Mukwege, founder of the Panzi Hospital, received the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize!

Dr. Mukwege’s leadership, dedication, commitment and strong voice are truly an inspiration. The Panzi Hospital has become known as a safe place for survivors of sexual violence to seek treatment and heal from their trauma, as well as providing support to hundreds of women in their vocation program.

Littleton Co-op proudly carries Congo Coffee Project on our shelves, alongside many other varieties of excellent fair trade coffees. By choosing to make your morning cup a fair trade one, you are helping make the world a little bit better every day.

To learn more about Equal Exchange, the Congo Coffee Project, and what Fair Trade means, visit their website at EqualExchange.coop.

Social Icons