Cause related coffee

Coffee, grown in relatively poor countries and largely consumed in richer ones, is well-suited to partnerships between producers and consumers aimed at achieving a variety of ecological, economic, and social goals.

Organic coffees are certified by various international monitoring agencies as having been grown without the use of potentially harmful chemicals, thus supporting the health of consumer, producer and environment. Shade-Grown and Bird-Friendly are epithets for coffees, particularly coffees from Central and South America, that are grown under canopies of native trees that provide shelter and sustenance for migrating birds. Fair-Traded coffees are purchased (usually from small holder farmers) at a "fair" price, one that should permit farmers to adequately sustain their families and their farms. This price is determined by international formula, and is always higher than the typically brutally low prices paid small holders by the local market. Eco-OK coffees are certified by an arm of the Rainforest Alliance to meet a range of balanced environmental and economic criteria intended to assure the long-term health of both land and people. An even broader set of criteria are in process of being defined under the general term sustainable, although at this writing that term, like shade grown, is not distinguished by any mechanism for definition and certification. In other words, it currently means whatever the user wants it to mean. Finally, individual roasting companies have developed their own social and economic programs. A percentage of the retail purchase price of a given coffee may go directly to support projects that help the growers of that coffee, for example.

Why Fair Trade Certified Coffee Is An Important New Movement:

It's a consumer trend. More and more people care about the conditions of the people who produce the products they buy. Coffee is the first commodity in the United States for which there is an independent monitor that guarantees that producers were paid a fair wage for their product and work in decent conditions -- a real alternative to sweatshops.

•  This is a huge industry trend. Across the country, there are over 100 companies that have licensing agreements with TransFair to offer Fair Trade Certified coffee. Major roasters include Starbucks, Tully's, Peet's, Equal Exchange, Diedrich, and Green Mountain, serving over 7,000 retail locations, with volumes rising every day.
•  It's an environmental issue. Small farmers are the best stewards of the land. When you support Fair Trade, you support the environment. Fair Trade farmers don't have the capital input to clear forests, buy chemical fertilizers and pesticides. They generally grow small plots of mixed-crop, shade grown coffee organically.
• The untold story of the gourmet coffee boom: it's leaving small farmers behind. Prices are currently at 8-year lows, falling under $.50 per pound in August 2001 -- yet retail prices stay high, meaning mass industry profits. Fair Trade brings small farmers into the boom

Further articles on this coffee tip:

• Cause related coffee
• Making a Difference