Quick answer: where to buy fair trade and organic coffee in Massachusetts
For fair trade and organic coffee roasted in Massachusetts, start with Equal Exchange in West Bridgewater and Dean's Beans in Orange, two worker-owned co-ops that built their businesses on it. Indigo in Northampton holds organic, Fair Trade and kosher certifications, and Esselon, Acoustic Java, Shelburne Falls, Red Barn and Armeno all sell certified coffees too.
| Roaster | Town | What its own pages say |
|---|---|---|
| Equal Exchange | West Bridgewater | Organic, fairly traded coffee from more than 40 small farmer co-ops; a worker cooperative |
| Dean's Beans | Orange | Organic, Fair Trade coffee since 1993; a Certified B Corporation; worker-owned since 2023 |
| Indigo | Northampton | Organic, Fair Trade and kosher certified; inspected every year by Baystate Organic Certifiers |
| Esselon | Hadley | Organic and Fair Trade coffees since 2006, through cooperatives |
| Acoustic Java | Worcester | Certified USDA Organic facility; Fair Trade, organic, Bird Friendly and Rainforest Alliance coffees |
| Shelburne Falls | Greenfield | Organic Fair Trade certified coffees, such as its organic Guatemalan, Sumatran and Peruvian |
| Red Barn | Upton | An Organic Red Barn Blend and an organic, Fair Trade certified Italian espresso |
| Armeno | Northborough | Fair Trade certified coffees from Ethiopia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru and Sumatra |
What fair trade and organic mean
Wikipedia defines fair trade coffee as coffee certified as produced to fair trade standards by fair trade organizations. Certification sets minimum prices for producers, with a premium on top, and favors cooperatives and small producer groups over large plantations. Fairtrade International and Fair Trade USA are two of the main certifiers.
Organic coffee, in Wikipedia's words, is grown without artificial chemical substances such as certain additives, pesticides and herbicides. In the United States the USDA's National Organic Program sets the rules for the organic label.
They are different promises. Fair trade is about how the farmer is paid; organic is about how the coffee is grown. A bag can carry one, both or neither, so read which one a roaster claims.
Two worker co-ops built on fair trade
Equal Exchange, West Bridgewater
Wikipedia calls Equal Exchange the oldest and largest Fair Trade coffee company in the United States. Rink Dickinson, Jonathan Rosenthal and Michael Rozyne founded it in 1986, and the company says its first coffee came from Nicaragua, imported despite the US embargo of the time. It now buys from more than 40 small farmer organizations, all democratically run cooperatives.
It is a cooperative on its own side too. Each worker-owner has one vote and an equal share, top pay is capped at five times the lowest by the co-op's own account (Wikipedia gives the cap as four times), and surplus profit is split equally each year. Its bylaws carry a Never Sell Out clause: if the co-op were ever sold, the net proceeds would go to another alternative trade organization. Its coffee list is organic from the breakfast blend to the cold brew, and it includes a Women in Coffee Blend.
Dean's Beans, Orange
Dean Cycon, a lawyer who worked on environmental and indigenous rights, started Dean's Beans in 1993 to buy organic, Fair Trade coffee through long-term relationships with farming communities. Over three decades it says it has worked with those communities on more than 90 projects that the cooperatives themselves lead, for needs like clean water, healthcare and education.
When Dean stepped away, he sold the company to its workers, and since 2023 it has been 100 percent worker-owned, with 14 owners. It is also a Certified B Corporation: in its 2026 recertification it scored 168.5, which it says makes it the highest scoring B Corp coffee company in the world. It also lists a Massachusetts Rural Small Business of the Year award for 2026.
The Pioneer Valley and Worcester
Western and central Massachusetts hold most of the certified roasters on our list.
- Indigo in Northampton is a USDA certified organic roaster, audited and inspected every year by Baystate Organic Certifiers, and holds Fair Trade and kosher certifications. It says it pays well above the Fair Trade minimum when it chases standout coffees, and its Bakery Blend, its Cascadia decaf and its nitro cold brew are all organic Fair Trade.
- Esselon in Hadley has roasted Organic and Fair Trade coffees since it opened in 2006, sourced through Fair Trade Organic cooperatives and conventional co-ops. Its espresso and French roast both come in Fair Trade Organic versions.
- Shelburne Falls in Greenfield lists Organic Fair Trade certified coffees among the more than 40 coffees it offers its wholesale buyers.
- Acoustic Java in Worcester roasts in a certified USDA Organic facility and carries Fair Trade, organic, Bird Friendly, Rainforest Alliance and women producer coffees. Its Peru decaf is certified organic.
East of Worcester, Red Barn in Upton sells an organic house blend and an organic, Fair Trade certified Italian espresso, and Armeno in Northborough lists five Fair Trade certified origins. The Northampton and Pioneer Valley page has the rest of that region's roasters.
More roasters with fair trade coffees or their own programs
Two more roasters sell fair trade coffees, and others on our list describe direct trade or farm-level programs of their own.
- Three Fins in West Dennis says it focuses on fair trade, small farm and small lot coffees, and sells an organic, direct trade Guatemala.
- Fazenda in Dedham sells a Fair Trade decaf from an indigenous cooperative in Cauca, Colombia, and a coffee from a network of women farmers in Honduras.
- George Howell in Acton says it pays well above Fair Trade prices on a sliding scale tied to quality, and visits the farms it buys from.
- Broadsheet says it pays well above Fair Trade prices, often several times the market price, and favors organically grown community lots for its blends.
- Barrington in Lee runs an Origin Certified program for coffees certified at origin as grown without pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilizers.
Fair trade at origin, local at home
Fair trade looks after the farmer. Buying from a roaster in this state looks after the other end of the chain: the roasters and crews in Orange, Northampton and West Bridgewater. At Dean's Beans and Equal Exchange, the people who roast and ship the coffee also own the company. More on that side in why local roasters matter.
A listing does not mean a roaster is part of the club. Bay State Coffee Club sends a 12 oz bag from a different independent Massachusetts roaster in each box, every 2 or 4 weeks, at $16.99 a bag. The first bag is free and you pay $7.99 shipping on that first box. Skip or cancel anytime.
Fair trade and organic questions
Is Equal Exchange based in Massachusetts?
Yes. Equal Exchange is a worker-owned cooperative headquartered in West Bridgewater. Wikipedia calls it the oldest and largest Fair Trade coffee company in the United States.
Which Massachusetts roasters are certified organic?
Indigo in Northampton is a USDA certified organic roaster, and Acoustic Java in Worcester roasts in a certified USDA Organic facility. Equal Exchange, Dean's Beans, Esselon, Shelburne Falls and Red Barn also sell organic coffees.
Is fair trade the same as organic?
No. Fair trade certification covers how producers are paid and organized; organic covers how the coffee is grown. A coffee can be one, both or neither.
Is Dean's Beans a B Corp?
Yes. Dean's Beans says it scored 168.5 in its 2026 B Corp recertification.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Fair trade coffee (definition; minimum prices and premium; cooperatives; Fairtrade International and Fair Trade USA)
- Wikipedia, Organic coffee (definition; the USDA National Organic Program)
- Wikipedia, Equal Exchange (oldest and largest Fair Trade coffee company in the US; 1986; founders; West Bridgewater; worker cooperative; highest pay capped at four times the lowest)
- Every roaster's certifications, coffees and buying practices, including Equal Exchange's Nicaragua start, its five-times pay cap and its bylaws and Dean's Beans' projects, ownership, B Corp score and award: our roaster profiles, written from each roaster's own pages and checked 2026-09-27.
By Joe McRose, Bay State Coffee Club. Updated . Definitions from Wikipedia's fair trade coffee and organic coffee articles; Equal Exchange's standing from Wikipedia; each roaster's certifications and buying practices from our roaster profiles, checked 2026-09-27.