About Gorilla Fund Coffee:

Gorilla Fund Coffee is Fair Trade Certified. Each package of Gorilla Fund Coffee generates $1.00 for the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (DFGI) to preserve and protect mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Africa.

The coffee beans in Gorilla Fund Coffee are produced by farmer-owned cooperatives in Rwanda. Your support of this coffee program promotes a sustainable economy for the people of Rwanda and reduces pressure on the surrounding mountain gorilla habitat.

Mountain gorillas:

Mountain gorillas are an extremely endangered species. There are about 380 remaining in the world, and all of them live in the wild. These mountain gorillas reside in Rwanda's Parc National Des Volcans.

The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (DFGI)

Dian Fossey founded the DFGI in 1978. The organization is dedicated to the conservation and protection of gorillas and their habitat in Africa through anti-poaching patrols, regular monitoring, research, education, and support of local communities.

DFGI projects include:

Training rangers and anti-poaching patrols to protect the critically endangered mountain gorilla population residing in Rwanda's Parc National des Volcans.
Collecting demographic, behavioral, and environmental data in order to study the mountain gorillas and their habitat.
Funding small scale-development in communities near gorilla habitat, in support of local people.
Promoting public awareness of gorilla conservation via media and other communication projects.

www.gorillafund.org

About Rwandan Coffee Farmers:

There are 500,000 coffee farmers in Rwanda. The average farm is one half acre (200 feet x 100 feet) with about 200 coffee trees amidst corn, beans, bananas, and garden vegetables. Coffee is most often the only source of family income, which averages under $150 per year. Coffee is Rwanda's number one export and source of foreign exchange.

Fair Trade:

Fair Trade is an innovative, market-based approach to sustainable development. Fair Trade helps family farmers in developing countries gain direct access to international markets and develop the business capacity necessary to compete in the global marketplace. By learning how to market their own harvests, Fair Trade farmers are able to take control of their businesses and receive a fair price for their product. This leads to higher family living standards, thriving communities and more sustainable farming practices.

Today's world coffee prices are about 60 cents per pound. In real terms, these are the lowest coffee prices in 300 years. This is a crisis for millions of coffee farmers around the world.

Coffees purchased at fair trade prices guarantee farmers at least $1.26 per pound. Also, the Fair Trade market connects farmer-run cooperatives directly to US importers. This cuts out the middlemen who previously profited at the expense of farmers, and creates the conditions for long-term sustainability.

At Thanksgiving we have made a commitment to promote the Fair Trade market to enhance the quality of coffee, improve the livelihood of coffee farmers and their families, and protect the environment. We feel it is important that every pound of Fair Trade coffee we produce comes from a place that cares about the workers, the environment, and the quality of the product.

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Cooperatives:

Small-scale coffee farmers don't grow enough coffee to export their product individually. To overcome this obstacle, they have established cooperatives to process, market, and sell their coffee together. We at Thanksgiving Coffee prefer to purchase coffee directly from cooperatives so that the profits stay within the community.

The Rwandan coffee cooperatives fund programs, which promote education, health care, gender equity, and environmental sustainability. The cooperatives fund these programs by investing a percentage of their coffee profits back into the community.

The cooperatives also fund and coordinate projects to improve the quality of their coffee. These projects plan for a future of better coffee, better prices, and more social and ecological benefits.

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