Beyond the Label with Lee Wallace, Queen Bean of Peace Coffee

 

Join us as we go beyond the label with brands we love at Martie. Today, we chat with Lee Wallace, CEO and owner of Peace Coffee! Shop all Peace Coffee on Martie, here!

 

We are so excited to carry your delicious coffee. Smarties know they can always get a bag of Peace Coffee, so let’s dive in to learn more about the brand!

Martie: What’s the mission behind Peace Coffee? 

Peace Coffee buys as much fair trade and organic coffee as possible from small-scale coffee farmers— to honor community, employees and the planet. Our tagline, ‘In It For Good,’ encapsulates a desire to forge lasting, beneficial partnerships with farmer cooperatives and the community, and to bring good to morning mugs everywhere. As a B Corporation, Peace is purpose-driven,  infusing the message of business as a force for good into its DNA to support farmers, empower staff, and delight customers.

Martie: How did the idea come to life? 

Peace Coffee’s founding nonprofit, the Institute for Agriculture & Trade Policy, began to help American farmers during the 1980s farm crisis, and grew to partner and advocate for long-term systemic change and farmer profitability worldwide. IATP was a visionary partner for Lee, and incubated Peace until it could stand on its own. Their ownership allowed Lee to maintain focus on mission and impact while experiencing strong growth. 

Fulfilling Peace Coffee’s mission isn’t just purchasing certified fair trade coffee, but building direct and long-term relationships with small farmer cooperatives, and paying prices responsive to their needs. Strong, transparent, and long-term relationships are at the center of sustainable and meaningful impact— in 2023 more than 98 percent of coffee purchases were from relationships of five years or more, allowing the company to work closely with producer groups to agree on common goals and product expectations.

Martie: What’s your favorite Peace Coffee brew? (hint: recipe or snack prompt!)  

Martie is carrying our Birchwood Whole Bean Medium Roast as well as our Tree Hugger Whole Bean Dark and Tree Hugger K-Cups.  

I find that a cup of our Tree Hugger dark roast pairs perfectly with these fudgy cocoa brownies –  so good for late night snacks when you're burning the midnight oil binging Netflix shows! Recipe below!

Fudgy Cocoa Brownies

What You Need

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted if lumpy
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 3/4 teaspoons sea salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil or extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

How to Make It

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly spray an 8×8 baking dish (not a 9×9 dish or your brownies will overcook) with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Spray the parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, water, and vanilla.
4. Sprinkle the dry mix over the wet mix and stir until just combined.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan (it’ll be thick – that’s ok) and use a spatula to smooth the top. Bake for 40 to 48 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs attached (note: it’s better to pull the brownies out early than to leave them in too long). Cool completely before slicing. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. These also freeze well!

Martie: What are your non-negotiables? What will you not sacrifice on as you build your business?

Peace Coffee’s commitment to coffee farmers is an absolute non-negotiable. We partner with coffee coops to make sure we’re having a positive impact in communities around the world. Our customers can always be sure we haven’t cut corners when it comes to our mission. In 2023 we returned more than $800,000 in Fair Trade and Organic premiums to the communities we buy coffee from. In addition to those premiums, we also support climate change mitigation projects through our Climate, Carbon and Coffee Initiative.

Martie: What has been your biggest “aha” moment when building Peace Coffee?

When Peace Coffee first got its start, people thought we were a little weird. But now the issues we have always supported, like sustainability, fair trade, organic farming, and corporate transparency are more mainstream and consumers are actually asking for them. 

Martie: How did Peace Coffee get so well known?

People are looking to support authentic, purpose-driven brands doing good in the world. That’s us! Our coffee is available in stores across the country because first and foremost, it’s delicious! 

And consumers have embraced what we do– thank you to everyone who buys our coffee. Our business model is working: we’ve doubled our business just in the last six years. 

Peace Coffee recognizes coffee is a ritual for our customers— and people have an emotional connection to the coffee they drink. It’s also about the time that they spend drinking coffee- whether it’s alone in the morning or with a friend on the weekend. And with Peace, people can buy coffee from a company that does the hard work for them — they feel good about what they buy but also enjoy what they’re drinking!

Martie: What’s in the pipeline next for Peace Coffee?

We’ve just started buying coffee from a new coop in Honduras– its mission is to support women to buy land and farm. Many are victims of domestic violence seeking to support themselves and their families. And in fact, we’re using this coffee in our Birchwood Blend, currently for sale on Martie.com. 

Being a conscious consumer can be really hard work… it can be as simple as looking for B Corp certification to verify the business they’re supporting  is truly interested in its impact on the planet. Peace Coffee plays an active leadership role in the coffee industry and the natural products industry – we believe in helping more companies recognize consumers want to support sustainable and mission-based brands and encouraging other brands to do what we do– . 

Martie: Why is working with Martie important to Peace Coffee?

Martie helps introduce us to new consumers– to make good food more accessible to more people. Martie, like Peace Coffee, wants to be a force for good– it’s a great partnership! Thanks, Martie!