The partnership between UMCOR and Equal Exchange began in 2002. The program gives churches the chance to support mutually beneficial relationships between farmers and consumers that honor the contribution of worker cooperatives and fair trade around the world.
SUSAN KIM
United Methodist Committee on Relief
Kay Mackie, already committed and knowledgeable about fair trade, deepened her dedication when she visited a co-op in Nicaragua called Tierra Nueva. She participated as part of a group that stayed with farming families and saw all aspects of coffee production in action.
With World Fair Trade Day coming on May 9, Mackie, a member of Monona United Methodist Church in Wisconsin, urged others to consider fair trade as an action, not just a concept.
Mackie’s church, like dozens of other UMCs around the world, is part of the partnership of the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) with the worker cooperative Equal Exchange.
The partnership, which began in 2002, gives churches the chance to support mutually beneficial relationships between farmers and consumers that honor the contribution of worker cooperatives and fair trade.
In addition, a portion of the proceeds from the sales of UMCOR’s fair-trade partners goes to UMCOR’s Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture program. Through it, UMCOR offers training to small-holder farmers to help them build their capacity and the sustainability of their farms.
This year, UMCOR is using these funds to support programs improving the food security and nutritional health of farming families in Nicaragua and India.
Many churches sell coffee and other products made in an economically just and environmentally sound way. They also send delegations to countries to see firsthand what fair trade means to farmers and artisans across the world.
“You come away from visiting the farmers even more dedicated and committed to this because in the public news people don’t hear this,” said Mackie. “They need to hear the good news about what the churches are doing.”
Janet Ruggirello, who also was part of the delegation that visited Nicaragua, hopes to expand the Equal Exchange program at her own church, and get other churches interested as well.
“At the farms, we had the opportunity to do some planting, and we went through every step of the coffee process with the exception of harvesting, which already had ended. I will probably never drink another cup of coffee unless it’s fair trade or organic,” she said.
“Through the Equal Exchange partnership, you can make a variety of items available at your church,” she said. “I just want people to understand that’s really what we are called to do. It’s social justice.”
Another member of the Nicaragua delegation, Jaydee Hanson, from Mount Olivet United Methodist Church in Arlington, Va., said that he observed the coffee farmers deeply caring for their land and their families.
“Because they grow coffee organically, their children are not exposed to dangerous pesticides, and monkeys and parrots squawk in the trees that shade their coffee. My morning coffee tastes even better than it did before I went to Nicaragua, and I will work even harder to get members of my church to buy it,” he said.
Mark your calendar for World Fair Trade Day on May 9, and learn more about how your church can take part in UMCOR’s partnership with Equal Exchange and other fair-trade organizations. When you do, you support just relationships between farmers and consumers and UMCOR’s Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture program.
Last Updated on November 17, 2023