The company was founded in 1996 by Jeff and Debra Moore and 3 friends, after a visit by Jeff Moore to the mountainous coffee-producing regions of Mexico in December 1995. The name was conceived as a pun on the word justice, reflecting the motivations behind the fair trade movement.[2]
The company roasts an annual volume of over 10,000 kilograms of coffee. In 2020, Just Us! produced $7.8 million CAD in sales.[3]
Grand Pre roastery and retail outlet
History
The business began as a coffee roastery in New Minas. Just Us! Is the first fair trade coffee roaster in Canada, starting a movement that lead to many other fair trade roasters in Canada. The business is a worker-owned cooperative, a decision inspired by the producer co-ops in Mexico from which Just Us! sources its coffee.[4]
Rather than using the charity model to support farmers in the Global South, Just Us! partners with producers to offer them more control.
The roastery is now located in Grand-Pre. Fair trade remains the main focus of the business. Just Us! has extended its product line to include chocolate, teas, and sugar and expanded operations to include a fair tradechocolate factory in Grand Pré, Nova Scotia. Just Us! has two cafés in Wolfville, Nova Scotia and Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia and wholesales to many cafés, restaurants, and grocery stores across Atlantic Canada. They also sell their products on their online store.
Just Us! also has a partner program, through which it shares resources to assist other local businesses in areas such as creating a co-op or opening a café.[5]
Co-operative
In order for a worker to become a member of the Just Us! cooperative, they must be employed at Just Us! for at least two years and invest $2000 into the business.[6]
Products
Just Us! sells a wide variety of products, including whole and ground coffee beans, instant coffee, green coffee beans, syrups, coffee brewing equipment, tea, chocolate, and sugar.[7]
Media attention
Canada 150, Mi'kmaki 13000
Just Us! has also gained international attention for its statement made through its road sign and posted on social media stating, "Canada 150, Mi'kmaki 13000". The sign was made as an effort to bring attention to the struggles of Indigenous peoples living in Canada during the widespread celebrations of Canada's 150th birthday.[8]
Coffee bag recycling
Just Us! states that they are also currently working on a coffee bag recycling program in order to properly and most efficiently recycle their plastic-based bags. Customers can return their bags to the company's locations in Wolfville and Grand Pré.[9] Their current coffee bags contain two layers of plastic and a layer of aluminium, making it difficult for them to be recycled in a traditional way. Until Just Us! is able to confirm the best destination for these bags, they remain in a storage location.[9]
General manager Joey Pitoello believes that the government should provide more leadership on complex recycling in cases such as these.[9]
Certifications
Just Us! has obtained a number of certifications for their ethical and sustainability standards. They are the first member to have joined the Small Producers Program (SPP) in 2011. The SPP program is the only Fair Trade program in the world that is entirely owned by small producers. Just Us! is Fairtrade-certified by Fairtrade Canada, and listed on Fair World Project’s website as a mission-driven brand.
^Cian McMahon Karen Miner (March 2021). Case Study: Just Us! Coffee Roasters Cooperative. Halifax, Canada: International Centre for Cooperative Management, Saint Mary's University.
^"Our Co-op". Just Us! Coffee Roasters. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
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