Students can satisfy their caffeine fix for free on Tuesday and Wednesday as the EIU Fair Trade Coalition passes out samples of Fair Trade Coffee in Coleman Hall from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The free coffee distribution is part of a campaign to get the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union to convert exclusively to Fair Trade certified coffee.

According to Global Exchange, coffee is a $50 billion industry, and the producers only receive 16% of the profits.

Fair Trade certified coffee guarantees workers a constant price for their goods, regardless of a fluctuating market, said Chris Lempa, EIU Fair Trade Coalition member.

“It’s all about fairness. The people producing these goods make nothing, while big corporations, like Starbucks or Folgers, make everything,” Lempa said.

Java B&B already offers Fair Trade Coffee, but serves other brands as well.

“Keith Bliss, the owner of Java B&B, has been real cooperative with us. The next step is to get the whole university to convert to Fair Trade Coffee,” Lempa said.

The EIU Fair Trade Coalition was formed last year to raise awareness of the “growing disproportionate pattern of wealth in this nation,” Lempa said.

The coalition is starting with coffee, but would like to see more commodities sold through Eastern to be Fair Trade-certified.

“We live in a very wealthy nation, and we have the power to positively affect people’s lives. This is something that we can do to make the world a little more just,” Lempa said.