The Fair Trade Finish Line

[...] for its developmental impact.  And Fair Trade has taken some hits the popular media and among coffee cognoscenti lately, which makes it a timely [...]

3 months, 4 weeks ago by The state of Fair Trade « coffee + development on Wordpress

Thanks for the comment Amber. And great discussion. Helping these families have more consistent income, access to education and health care, and greater food security goes a long way to ensuring sustainability. Coffee Kids and other nonprofits in the industry give every shop, roaster, and consumer the opportunity to help these families create more vibrant local economies that help buffer against price fluctuations. . ... See all content Hide content

4 months, 1 week ago by Kyle Freund on Wordpress

Well said, Kyle.

This is a great discussion, of the sort that we should all be having more often in the specialty coffee industry. This is an incredibly complex issue, difficult to address in any broad manner due to diverse producing, and purchasing, situations. Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, your local small roastery, Herbazu, a co-op in Ethiopia, or a large plantation in Brasil all come with their own set of circumstances (obviously). We have to keep this in mind, tailoring individual solutions to each situation. This approach is strengthened by long-standing trade relationships, a deeper knowledge of the intricacies of each situation, and the broader goals of the producer and roaster.

Here’s where I think we all become too focussed on the price paid for the coffee as being the primary piece of data on which we place the success or failure of a more ethical sourcing program. We forget the WHY of this movement in the first place! We’re after a truly ethical sourcing program in which the quality of life can improve for producers, yes? We should continue to question what that means, exactly, and how we measure it.

Yes, we should be concentrating on transparency, traceability, quality, and integrity. Thankfully, these are becoming more accepted, and have even moved toward the status of common sense for sourcing practices in the industry.

But beyond establishing relationships to raise quality, and then paying for that quality (probably more so under direct trade-type programs), what are the broader benefits for the producing community? Without a doubt, in certain direct trade relationships, the broader impact has been extraordinary… but can that happen more often, for more producing communities? What else, beyond extra funds paid for the coffee, can a more ethical trade model contribute?

This attacks a fundamental question of how we measure success: monetary values, or by other bottom lines?

Idea exchange, collaboration, more participatory work on community issues (Bikes to Rwanda is one example that springs to mind, as does Cafe Femenino). I think that to truly be ethical in the way we source coffee, we absolutely have to be holistic!

So to get back to Kyle’s point, it should be within our reach as responsible coffee purchasers to work with producing communities on year-round income, as well as contributing to other areas that can improve quality of life (education, infrastructure, gender issues, health care, etc). Before we get too focussed on the fact that direct trade coffees pay more to the farmer in a more transparent way than Fair Trade tends to, we should remember that we’re all working towards a model in which the bare minimum is a progressively ambitious and holistic target.

(there are many caveats to this, especially in how it would be applied… i.e.: i’m not suggesting that every coffee roaster who buys coffee directly then has the power to dictate how or where extra funds should be spent on community projects… but rather that collaborative and participatory support could be offered for such projects. moreover, we should also be talking about commodity grade coffees and sourcing practices there… but that’s another discussion!). ... See all content Hide content

4 months, 3 weeks ago by Amber Fox on Wordpress

I worked for starbucks for some years and spent a lot of that time in moral quandry trying to decide if the company was doing more good or more harm on several levels. Though cafe practices at first seemed like a but of a shifty proposition -going from third party certification to starbucks essentially giving themselves certification, I thought- I’ve since warmed up to it after learning more , including the fact that the certification is done by a third party. It’s nice every now and then to hear comments as above that show some evidence that this really does work for growers.

I think starbucks has been pushing fair trade so hard lately because it is easier to get that point across than to try to educate their customers on what their own ethical sourcing program is all about. When a company buys into fair trade certification they also are getting a nice prepackaged phrase with which to engage those concerned (but not necessarily that informed) about sourcing. Everyone knows (or thinks they know, or has an idea) what “Fair Trade” means for product they are buying. Starbucks says that CAFE practices is still their main program for ethical sourcing (http://www.starbucks.com/SharedPlanet/ethicalInternal.aspx?story=performanceProgress), which suggest that they will indeed continue to pay above fair trade for most of their coffee. Unfortunately CAFE practices doesn’t have the same pull with starbucks’ yuppie clientelle as the magic words “Fair Trade Certified”, so it seems in public they push their fair trade affiliation while less publically working towards CAFE practices certification for most of their coffee . ... See all content Hide content

4 months, 4 weeks ago by rick on Wordpress

Great article written about Fairtrade buying practices http://bit.ly/3ovUM5. I couldn't agree more.

5 months ago by FratelloCoffee2 on Twitter

I just served on a panel about this (“Deepening Fair Trade” at the Ross Net Impact Conference at the University of Michigan) with Cate Baril of Transfair. Some great points made, but a lot of it focuses on trade and making it more traceable and transparent. An equal amount of effort ought be dedicated to ensuring families have options for consistent year round income as well. Higher prices go a long way in supporting families, but coffee will never be enough, especially for the small landholders. Encouraging and supporting economic alternatives alongside coffee production can give families more consistent income and bolster families against market volatility. ... See all content Hide content

5 months ago by Kyle Freund on Wordpress

More on fair trade from @jimseven http://bit.ly/4unLRB

5 months ago by amautacoffee on Twitter

good 'ol @jimseven, still the nice guy I met years ago, hits the heart of the starting point: http://bit.ly/2fOh3I

5 months ago by RoasterJack on Twitter

I don’t think we have to leap all the way to direct trade. Direct trade simply isn’t feasible for many roasteries. We are only able to purchase some stuff direct with the generous assistance of others when it comes to moving it.

While Direct Trade is definitely something to work towards I think a much more immediate goal is to simply choose to buy traceable coffees, and pay a price for them linked to their quality. If there isn’t sufficient transparency - from broker, exporter or anyone else, then look for something more. The market will provide what is required. If we are willing to pay for it (a big if!) then farmers and millers are, I think, fairly willing to supply what we want. ... See all content Hide content

5 months ago by James Hoffmann on Wordpress

W/ respect to coffee, is Fair Trade enough? Can we do better? We like to think so.. as do other coffee professionals.. http://bit.ly/2zxYx1

5 months ago by PubCoffeeHouse on Twitter

And with recent articles regarding the failure of Fair Trade, it seems as though Fair Trade isn’t providing a solution.

The question is, where do we go from here? Many of us turn to Direct Trade for the solution to the Fair Trade issues. Sustainable and higher wages, rewards for quality, and better relationships, we say. However, to arrive at these, there is significant difficulty and complexity on both sides of the relationship to develop a true partnership. I know of one roaster who marketed a ‘relationship coffee’ but didn’t know the name of the farmer or location of the farm, let alone the ‘relationship’ with the farmer. Subsequently, this roaster dropped the ‘relationship’ after two years. Will Direct Trade become another buzz word that gives us warm fuzzies but does not require the commitment and complexity of a relationship?

Furthermore, is it possible for all to move out of current systems into a direct model? The fact of the matter is that unfortunately, the barriers of entry for the most direct relationships are stacked against the farmer and the consumer. Between exporting licenses, shipping containers, language barriers, capital and storage issues, Direct Trade isn’t something we can lightly dabble in. Ultimately, it’s going to require a full commitment and constant refining. Unfortunately, it seems like even with this commitment, Direct Trade for some farmers and roasters may not be possible. What do we say to the individual farmer who grows 2,000lbs a year? Does the Fair Trade Cooperative model offer a better opportunity for that farmer than attempting to establish a DT relationship? Is there room in the economic exchange of coffee for more than one model? ... See all content Hide content

5 months ago by Jake on Wordpress

RT ... More of ongoing dialogue on transfairs questionable relevance. jimseven Blog post - The Fair Trade Finish Line: http://bit.ly/3ovUM5

5 months ago by coffeeco on Twitter

James Hoffman with another great article - The Fair Trade Finish Line http://tinyurl.com/yk2r2r9

5 months ago by anthonyivey on Twitter

James, I think the certification system Starbucks works with is called C.A.F.E.(http://www.scscertified.com/retail/rss_starbucks.php), although I did hear the term STAR program before … There is some brief info about it in this brochure: http://www.bootcoffee.com/sustainableguide.pdf

5 months ago by Yara on Wordpress

Yes folks, he's on a roll: @jimseven gives his take on Fair Trade being the absolute minimum, not the end goal: http://bit.ly/3ovUM5

5 months ago by coffeegeek on Twitter

Blog post (I seem tp be on a roll here) - The Fair Trade Finish Line: http://bit.ly/3ovUM5

5 months ago by jimseven on Twitter