Why Fair Trade Month Matters
Fair Trade Month is a time to recognize and celebrate the movement that champions better wages, safer working conditions, environmental protection, and transparency across global supply chains. Every October, it calls attention to the choices we make as consumers — and the people and communities impacted by those choices.
At CatSpring Yaupon, that work doesn’t happen far away. It begins right here, rooted in our Texas home.
Dignified Work for Rural Texans
Fairness begins with who we choose to hire — and how we choose to see them.
Through our People First Dignified Employment Initiative, we work with local probation officers and community leaders to offer meaningful employment to individuals who are often overlooked. Many of our team members come to us facing systemic barriers — rebuilding after incarceration or navigating generational poverty.
Here’s what People First looks like in action:
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Individuals on probation find stable, supportive work as they rebuild their lives
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Women facing generational poverty receive flexible hours that honor family and healing
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Every team member is met with dignity, not judgment — and offered space to grow
We’ve seen firsthand that work can do more than pay the bills — it can restore purpose, confidence, and possibility. And it’s our honor to build that kind of workplace, right here in rural Texas.
Wild-Harvested, With Care
Yaupon, North America’s only native source of caffeine, grows wild across our region. Instead of farming it, we partner with local ranchers and landowners to harvest it the way nature intended — by hand, with care, and without disrupting the land.
Our approach:
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Hand-harvest only what’s needed so plants regenerate naturally
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Leave root systems and surrounding vegetation untouched
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Reduce overgrowth and support land restoration in the process
Built on Transparency and Intention
We didn’t start CatSpring Yaupon just to make tea.
We started it to build something good — something honest, local, and lasting.
That means we operate with:
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Transparency — You can trace our process from harvest to packaging
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Sustainability — We work to minimize our footprint and support native ecosystems
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Community impact — We create jobs, not just products
We believe in business as a force for good — one that leaves things better than it found them.
When you choose brands like ours, you're not just getting a great product. You’re voting for a more thoughtful economy — one that values people, protects the land, and redefines what success can look like.
A Better Cup, A Better Choice
So as you reflect this Fair Trade Month, we invite you to think about the story behind your cup.
Behind each bag of CatSpring Yaupon is a team of people who’ve been given a second chance, a patch of Texas land that’s been respected, and a native plant that’s offering the world a gentler kind of caffeine.
We’d be honored to share it with you.