When choosing between fair trade coffee or normal, the answer should be as predictable as, "regular or decaf?" The answer is fair trade.

Although many people like specialty flavors and brews, there is equity to consider in every coffee purchase. Fair trade coffee is continually assuring it is achieved. It tastes good, and purchasing it helps poor coffee farmers earn the money they deserve for the hard work they put into growing it.

The phrase "fair trade" refers to an agreement between the farmers who produce the coffee and the retailers who distribute it. It is a political and economical movement that pushes for unity between the consumer that chooses fair trade coffees and the producer. Under fair trade agreements, the middle men - nicknamed "coyotes" by the growers - who buy coffee from farms for obnoxiously low prices and then sell it to distributors, are eliminated.

Concern for the inequities faced by farmers in the coffee business recently has been brought to light as the prices earned for each pound of coffee began to fall while store prices remained the same. In a Wal-Mart-esque move, large corporations began controlling the price they pay to farmers, many who live in poverty because of their poor profit margin. Fair trade farmers often earn two to three times what they would normally earn at the commodity price.

The next time you are at a Sparty's Convenience Store or another local coffee shop, you might want to try the fair trade brand. Fair trade coffees usually have the phrase in their names. If a coffee shop does not already serve fair trade options, urging its owners to do so can't hurt. It's a way to help the little guy prevail over the big hulking corporation.

If you are a coffee snob and you like such-and-such flavor, chances are you'll probably like the fair trade brand better than your typical cup.

Fair trade beans are grown in specific tree-shaded organic fashion that allows them to lower their caffeine content, create more sugar and, in general, develop what is classified as a gourmet taste. Although most coffee is quickly sun-cultivated, fair trade is grown using an environmentally friendly method that not only makes a better product, but doesn't have an adverse effect on the soil and water on coffee farms.

Still, there are some who feel that financial contributions are just one aspect of social change and want to do more.

Although coffee junkies certainly should purchase fair trade brew at every opportunity, encouraging friends to do the same is another great idea.

Those types also might want to educate themselves. Go beyond the newspaper and pamphlet and read up about the living conditions for coffee farmers, the injustices imposed by corporations and the taste benefits of shade-grown beans. It's a deep issue that has a good amount of ink devoted to it.

With all the people who use caffeine in coffee to get motivated, putting some of that energy toward making change seems like a "fair" idea.