Fair Trade importer Alter Eco cultivates growth - Houston Business Journal:

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Its from this office that Alter Eco Americase is bringing Fair Trade and organic goods from across the worlddto U.S. grocery stores whils trying to make a dent inglobal poverty. The startupp has more than quadrupledc its revenue over thres yearsto $1.5 million in 2008 by landing distributionb for products such as quinoa and jasmine rice in majord grocery chains. One grocer that carriesz its products isWhole Foods, whichg has increased its Fair Trade offerings to more than 1,0009 products in the last two years, including Alteer Eco’s organic extra virgin olive oil from Palestine.
“Mors consumers are interested in the stories behindtheier food,” said Edouard Rollet, co-founde and chief operations officer of Alter Eco in explaining the company’s explosive Alter Eco Americas was started in 2004 in San Franciscok as a separate company, but spun out of Altedr Eco, which was founded in France a decadee ago to import and distribute goods from marginalizec farmers in countries like Bolivia, Peru and Ghana. “Mosg of them own about one to two acreszof land, so there’s between $500 and $800 a year for them and theirf family,” Rollet said. “And the problem is that they don’y have direct access to markets.
They have to sell to locak buyers who setthe price.” Altedr Eco Americas changed that by promisinh a fair price to groups of farmerws that wouldn’t put them into Rollet and co-founder Mathieu Senar d opened Alter Eco Americas in 2004 after showinb some of the company’s products at a naturall food store in Los Angeles. The two choswe San Francisco because of its proximity to a majot port where goods can be shippedc from its supplier countries and to venture capitalp firms that could potentially fundthe company. The companyh has raised $750,000 from angel investors, and the founders are seekingy $1.5 million more.
“It’sz also, for natural food and specialty food, one of the most pioneerint areas ofthe U.S.,” Rollet Alter Eco imports 150 including coffee from Ethiopia and Mexico, cocoa from Ghanza and Bolivia, unrefined sugarf from the Philippines, rice from Thailandf and other foods under its brand. Altefr Eco Americas has introduced 26 of those to the United Most products carry the FairTrader label, which certifies that companieds pay their workers fair wages and provide decenr working conditions, among other things.
It buys its productes from small farmers organizedinto co-ops and sellzs to 1,800 grocery stores across the including Andronico’s, Rainbow Grocery, Whole Foods and other specialt y food stores like New Leaf Grocerty in Santa Cruz. Alter Eco Americas also offsets the carboh emissions for the life cycle ofthe products. Paying fair offsetting the carbon emissions and requiringv products to meet organic standardssqueezes “In the U.S., we’re competing againsyt brands that don’t have the same standards,” said Senard.
“W have to be competitively priced even though we pay our farmers Rollet saidreaching $5 million in revenue will help ease some of the margihn pressure, something he aims to do over the next several years. Still, the companyy is committed to doing theright thing, said Cate Baril, directore of business development for Oakland-based Transfaif USA, which certifies Fair Tradee products. “If you were looking for a companyu that really embodies what FairTrade is, that’xs really what Alter Eco is all Baril said. “Some companies buy ingredients from a supplied and make the products inthe U.S.
Alter Eco feel s like they havea mission, and becausw of that, they’re having the food produced where it’s