Fifteen years ago, Dean Cycon formed the company Dean’s Beans as a model of how a commodity could be grown, processed, and sold in ways that are environmentally sensitive, economically fair, and return a profit. He buys organically grown beans from farmer cooperatives throughout the world and roasts them in the company’s facility in Orange, Mass. Profits are shared with the farmers and company employees and are invested in community development projects in the farmer’s regions. He also pressures coffee chains to increase the percentage of their offerings that have been produced in ways that are environmentally and socially responsible. The company has received Best Practices Recognition from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and a Sustainability Award from the Specialty Coffee Association of America. “He was for fair trade before fair trade was cool,” said Bill Harris, president of Cooperative Coffees. A 1975 graduate of Williams, Cycon is the author of the book “Javatrekker: Dispatches From the World of Fair Trade Coffee.”
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