From small beginnings Equal Exchange has built a £1m business on sourcing and retailing fair trade food and drink products. 

Women picking tea grown on the  Puthajhora Estate in North India, used in Equal Exchange Teas

The origins of Equal Exchange stretch back to 1979 when three voluntary workers returned to Edinburgh after working on aid projects in various parts of Africa. They had seen how small scale farmers were getting into debt due, in part, to the appallingly low prices they received for their products. They realised that aid was not the answer – direct, fairer trading could help redress the balance. Along with a sister organisation in London, they started buying instant coffee from Bukoba on Lake Victoria in Tanzania. As a result Campaign Coffee was born. In 1987 the Equal Exchange label was launched. 

Equal Exchange products include coffee, both caffeinated and decaffeinated; tea, both black tea and speciality teas; honey; spreads; cocoa; sugar and confectionery. Equal Exchange also imports and sells the first fairly traded Rooibos tea bags in the UK. All Equal Exchange products are fairly traded and most are certified organic. Equal Exchange was also one of the four founders of Caf�direct and retains a stake in the company. As well as supplying fairly traded goods and supporting producers through trading relationships, Equal Exchange endeavours to influence the strategic development of fair trade through collective efforts with those of similar values.

Equal Exchange and Shared Interest are similar companies in some ways – for both organisations, Members’ own the company and each member has an equal vote. The difference is that Equal Exchange only has six members! 

Many years after the initial idea came to fruition, the three volunteers’ dreams are beginning to be realised. 

Click here to learn how you can invest in fair trade. Click here to donate to the Shared Interest Foundation