John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman of MLive and "Behind the Mitten" talks to Higher Grounds coffee owner Chris Treter, who operates his Fair Trade Company in Traverse City.

They work with specialty growers in Mexico and the Chiapan Highlands of Mexico.

Chris talks about his original vision for the company, which is about "1,000 times the original vision," he said. They are now available in a variety of stores, including Meijer.

He has several coffee gift packages just in time for the holidays. You can check them out online. A portion of the sales goes to the non-profit On the Ground, which empowers coffee farming communities through gender and social equity, environmental sustainability, and economic security.

High Grounds also is a finalist for the Good Food Awards, a national award in the coffee category. Only 5 companies in Michigan were named finalists in all the categories.

More info at https://www.highergroundstrading.com/

More info on Behind the Mitten at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/