A weekly series, in which I tackle a Q from a reader looking for green advice.

Yes, I know it’s Wednesday. Better late than never? This question’s actually one that Cybele of Candy Blog got from one of her readers. She forwarded it to me in case I could answer it:

Question: Do you know where I can get fair trade whole vanilla beans? Judi

Answer: Hey Judy and Cybele — First, just a note to readers who many not have heard yet — Fair trade certified vanilla has indeed hit the market :) Get it in your Ben & Jerry’s vanilla ice cream!

However — While a number of companies offer fair trade vanilla extract now, it appears that fair trade certified whole vanilla beans aren’t avaliable for individual consumers yet.

That said, I still have a recommendation! Frontier Natural Products, which offers fair trade certified vanilla extract, is probably your best bet. While their vanilla beans are not yet certified, FNP’s the only company that offers vanilla beans that’s shown any commitment to fair trade certified vanilla, as far as I can tell.

And hopefully over time, FNP will make their vanilla beans fair trade too. I called the company this morning, and the representative said that the company really tries to source as much of their product via fair trade as possible — but that this fair trade vanilla thing’s still very new.

Frontier Natural Products is also Co-op America approved, which makes me inclined to believe they’re, you know, nice.

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