PCC Sound Consumer
October 2005
Fair labor, fair trade. The view from the mountain village
by Carol Estes
It’s a modest little black-and-white logo. You may have noticed it on a bag of coffee in PCC stores or your neighborhood coffee shop. It indicates the coffee was purchased directly from a cooperative of small farmers who were paid a fair price, whose workers were treated and paid fairly, and whose coffee was produced with sustainable methods.
Co-ops: the quiet economy
by David J. Thompson
There are 40,000 cooperative organizations playing an important role in the lives of most Americans. Although these cooperatives aggregate billions of dollars and serve millions of people on a daily basis, the media seldom mention their presence.
Your energy choices make a difference, too
your environment
Our landscapes and communities are shaped by the choices we make as consumers. This understanding motivates us to choose organic and local products when shopping. Good choices also are available when it comes to electricity ... Utilities across the Puget Sound area also offer green power options to customers, making it easy to support renewable energy.
Pure Farms Pork: Keeping it natural and humane
Sustainability profile
With growing consumer demand for more pure, antibiotic-free meat, some energetic individuals like Theresa Knaack are encouraging the evolution of the industry from within.
The Trust is looking for a new organic farm to save and preserve. Also read about giving a thank you card to farmers, the employee matching gift program, new PCC Farmland Trust staff Summer Howe, and new totes and t-shirts for the Farmland Trust.
The online version of the Sound Consumer contains feature stories and regular columns. Information from the "Fresh and natural" pages in the printed version can be found in the products area of the Web site or in our recipe database.