Pick your cause wisely: Fair trade v. Organic?
While setting up the fair trade coffee tasting at USC, I kept hearing about Starbucks’ other “green coffees.” Jonathan, the Starbucks’ food service account manager who was helping me out, wanted to bring along the organic and shade grown blends to the tasting too.
Cindy of Starbucks brought these up in conversation too, saying Starbucks has a coffee for whatever customers are “into.” So the shade-grown advocates can get their Shade Grown Mexican, and the organic drinkers can opt for Serena Organic Blend. And fair trade girls like me can sip on Cafe Estima.
While I like that Starbucks is paying attention to these issues, I’m a lil uncomfortable with the way important social and environmental issues get isolated into individual “pet cause” categories consumers have to pick between. I mean, I like my coffee fair trade, organic, and shade grown — Must I choose?
I usually just go for fair trade, since the fair trade certification encourages and helps farms go organic, generally moving toward more sustainable farming methods. I figure it’s the easiest way to try to cover as many bases as possible.
Of course, the diehards choose not to choose — They buy their triple certified coffee from Caffe Ibis.
This issue’s not Starbucks-specific, or even coffee specific. In fact, it looks like everyone could benefit from ALL the food-related “causes” out there — fair trade, shade-grown, organic, local — and I’m sure there are others.
Cuz organic doesn’t mean good working conditions — which is why we have the fair trade label. But that label isn’t avaliable for US farms — and apparently, conditions for workers on organic farms in California are quite sucky. This isn’t just big ag corporations bullying workers — Many owners of these farms can’t afford health insurance for themselves, let alone for their workers.
And the US isn’t alone. Welsh farmers want their milk to sport a fair trade logo, alleging that they don’t get a good deal from supermarkets.
It looks like we need a fair trade movement for farmers everywhere –
Update, 11/10/05: And now UK’s National Farmer’s Union, including Scotland’s farmers, put in their 2 cents against the supermarkets –
Update, 6/18/06: Writes Gregory Dicum for SF Gate: “Sustainability has to embody both social and environmental aspects. You can’t have a healthy environment without healthy societies, and vice versa. Both underlie healthy commerce.”
Thus, Greg says he goes for at least double certified (organic and fair trade) coffee whenever possible — a habit that effectively rules out Starbucks coffee, which offers no options that’re both organic and fair trade. “Sustainability involves everyone. It’s a team effort that requires an aligned mission from growers, importers, roasters, activists, retailers and, of course, coffee drinkers.”
That’s indeed a problem - if you are not a mega-corp, you *are* struggling. No way around that. I’ll spare you an endless rant on that topic (unless you are *really* bored ;) and will just let you know that those of us who like to buy their triple-cert’ed coffee in person can do so, too. Just discovered that Trader Joe’s has shade-grown, fair-trade, organic Coffee. And, to make my life perfect, it’s Ethiopian! (At least for me, Southamerican coffees have the tendency to develop a slight ashtray-aftertaste if they sit a bit too long. African works much better for me)
I have no idea how it tastes, though - haven’t opened the can yet. But it’s proof that Starbucks could get all three groups in a single coffee. Should reduce the waste they get from all the french-pressed stuff, ne? (that nobody makes, but if they did..)
Comment by Robert 'Groby' Blum — October 25, 2005 @ 10:51 pm
Ah — but is it triple CERTIFIED? I’ve written about TJs fair trade coffees before — and while a couple are double certified, I don’t think any of them have the shade grown certification.
But this Ethiopian blend sounds new — so maybe TJ’s has indeed added a triple cert blend?
I dunno — I think it must be pretty tough for small companies to put all the money, effort, and energy into getting triple certified. With TJs, since they generally do good, I’m willing to trust the stuff’s shade grown, certification or not :)
Comment by Siel — October 25, 2005 @ 11:55 pm
I’m from Seattle. I used to love Starbucks during the 80’s.
Now I wouldn’t set foot in one of their many sterile corporate establishments.
They may brag about selling “Free Trade Certified Coffee”, as if they are “doing the right thing”, but they have no problem moving in across the street from old established coffee houses in America and driving them under in droves.
Go to the PCCP co-op in Seattle if you want organically grown, environmentally friendly coffee.
Comment by Anonymous — October 26, 2005 @ 12:01 am
I think I spoke too soon. While it’s technically triple cert’ed, it has two organic certificates (QAI and USDA) and the fair trade cert. So, the shade-grown stuff is still uncertain.
I’ll have more info on the actual taste tomorrow - if I get out of bed early enough to actually make coffee ;)
Comment by Robert 'Groby' Blum — October 26, 2005 @ 1:01 am
I hadn’t noticed the Welsh farmers call for Fair Trade milk, shameful really given that I live in Cardiff.
Another oddity is that the majority of “welsh milk” now has to travel across the border into England to be processed, before being transported back to be sold in Welsh supermarkets. This is because the major creamery in West Wales closed earlier this year, partly due to the low prices paid by supermarkets for the milk.
Comment by Phillip Fayers — October 26, 2005 @ 1:51 am
First, I did just tonight see a Shade Grown, Organic, Fair Trade coffee at Trader Joe’s; 13 oz. for US$6.99 v. $6.99 for 15 oz of organic.
BUT, perhaps we are comparing apples, and, er, organic oranges.
Fair Trade issue are mostly, albeit not entirely, progressive economic issues. Although the FT designation includes “encouragement” toward ecologically sustainable and healthier farming practices, it does not certify those.
Organic buyers may be intent on finding food that is healthiest for them, the consumer. It becomes an open question whether I would rather support a small farmer’s economic well being, or drink coffee that may well bring me harmful residues.
Organic also spares farmers, and mere workers and nearby residents the health fallout of overspray, groundwater contamination, and regular exposure to toxics. There is also a reduction in dependence on oil products.
Organic buyers may also be interested in farming practices which do not significantly war with the health of the earth, and thereby everyone’s long term health.
Similarly, shade grown coffee is an eco-health issue, avoiding the clear cutting of rainforest and other habitats.
One may need to choose. For now.
In our household, we have largely opted for organic over the other choices. Given the opportunity, we will choose organic-only over fair trade-only in a coffee. That is just the priority that seems right to us. We tend to see both the personal health benefits and global health benefits, as well as the environmental justice benefits of reduced farmer and neighbor poisoning as slightly more important than the economic justice issue alone.
This is not a sarcastic comment, either, merely a frank acknowledgement of the the barest higher ranking of organic over fair trade — for us.
We are not so wedded to organic that we poo-poo Fair Trade, or drink organic coffee or nothing. But it is a first preference.
Now here is why I like your blog, and why it is entirely consistent that — completely by accident — your header quotes Kermit the Frog and mine contradicts him. (GreenLAGirl: It’s not easy being green; Easy Green: Kermit was wrong.)
It *is* easy making the first steps toward awareness of green issues, and making simple but effective adjustments to lifestyle to have a better impact on our environmental health. It is easy to slide down that slippery slope to where it is possible to care enough to wonder about organic v. Fair Trade v. shade grown v. triple certified.
Again, the whole premise of my blog is that it is easy to do a lot of things that move one well into the greenie spectrum. But once here, it is not always clear what the *best* practice is, as there is an element of personal priority involved.
And that’s where your approach is helpful: Whereas the debate over four types of “good” coffee would likely turn a newly aware green consumer off, it is important for carrying the larger green agenda forward — including each of social, economic and environmental justice, and personal well being.
Keep asking the hard questions!
Comment by Roger, Gone Green — October 26, 2005 @ 5:52 am
Maybe I’m just unspeakably Pollyanna-ish, but I figure that it doesn’t matter too much which issue people pick as their pet cause. Although I hear you and wish there were a more comprehensive vision of what environmental justice looked like -or justice at all, for that matter.
In the meantime, maybe it’s a good enough that I choose fair trade coffee, my neighbor picks shade-grown, and the kid next door works at the homeless shelter. We’re all connected, in any case.
Comment by Andrea — October 26, 2005 @ 6:11 am
Hi, I don’t think the issue of fair trade cotton has come up here. But, I am going to a conference in London on Monday and one of the issues on the agenda is fair trade cotton and labor rights.I will be writing about the conference on my blog. Actually I have already put up a few posts on preparing for the conference.
Comment by J. Otto Pohl — October 26, 2005 @ 9:38 am
I agree, the separation of coffees into “organic” v. “fair trade” v. “shade grown” is silly. How about… organic and fair trade AND shade grown? It’s NOT HARD. In fact… I believe Trader Joe’s does just that in their 5 Countries Organic Fair Trade Espresso blend. And at such an attractive price, too…. just a titch over $6 per pound.
No. No, sure, Starbucks is right. They can rape the consumer for more money by keeping it all separated. All about the bottom line, right?
Comment by Will Pillage For Yarn — October 26, 2005 @ 2:33 pm
Hey peeps — Love the feedback, but I’m kinda hoping you’ll read each other’s comments too — Three of you mentioned Trader Joe’s coffees :) Those are not CERTIFIED shade grown, though, as I’ve said before, I’m kinda willing to take TJ’s word for it :)
Anonymous — I totally agree with you that this big corp’s habit of driving indie cafes out of biz is rather heinous :( That said, their size could mae a HUGE diff for the coffee farmers — I’m a lil stuck between pragmatic desire for widespread change, and a more purist desire for fair trade coffee in cafes with neighborhood personality –
Roger and Andrea — Ok ok — I agree all these issues are important ;) My point is NOT that fair trade is more important than organic or shade grown or whatever, but that all these issues are interrelated and it would be nice if consumers didn’t feel they had to pick a pet cause :)
Otto — I did talk about cotton subsidies in the past, but am interested in finding out more about it — Thanks for the info :)
Comment by Siel — October 28, 2005 @ 1:14 am
Thanks for the link, I missed that post. I agree completely that the cotton subsidies by the US and EU (Spain and Greece) really hurt poorer countries.
Comment by J. Otto Pohl — October 28, 2005 @ 5:28 am