Higher Grounds believes that truly sustainable specialty coffee begins with and returns to growers, whose wellbeing is the heart of coffee quality. Through sales of organic, fairly traded coffee; community projects; and origin delegations, Higher Grounds offers coffee drinkers the opportunity to directly benefit producer communities.

Exceptional coffee is produced within a circle that begins with and returns to farmers at origin. When coffee professionals focus on the wellbeing of individuals all along the supply chain, the sustainability of the entire cycle is improved. The greatest potential for impact is at coffee origin, where producers face challenges mostly unseen by consumers of their product: poverty, lack of clean water access, severely limited educational opportunities. If the entire specialty coffee industry saw quality through a lens that also illuminated the realities of life as a coffee farmer, those realities could be improved for more of the individuals responsible for our daily cup. When efforts are focused equally on sustainability AND quality, everyone involved benefits.

Keywords: fair trade, organic, sustainable, coffee, Michigan, roaster

Sector: Agriculture/Growers
Size: 10-49 employees

B Corp Certified – Impact Score: 84