Starbucks are to double their purchase of Fairtrade coffee, the company announced last week. The deal will see Starbucks buy 40 million pounds of Fairtrade coffee in 2009, making it the largest single purchaser of Fairtrade certified coffee.
This is the kind of commitment I was hoping for when I saw Starbucks had launched their new ethical initiative, Shared Planet. Why they chose to roll that out in association with Conservation International, and only announce the partnership with TransFair USA and FLO a month later is anyone’s guess.
“I’m proud of the role Starbucks has played in raising environmental and agricultural standards” said Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. “ By doubling our commitment to Fair Trade Certified and scaling up our global partnership, we have a unique opportunity to further reinforce our ongoing efforts to benefit farmers and communities.”
Good news, but to put this 40 million pound commitment into perspective a little, Starbucks bought 300 million pounds of coffee in 2006. Doubling Fairtrade purchases will raise the total percentage of certified coffee sold from 6% to 12%.
12% is still better than 6%. At least Starbucks is taking action. Even a little action is better than none – We should just expect and demand more from a multinational corporation. I fail to believe that Starbucks can’t afford to switch to 100% fair trade when AMT have managed alright.
I guess it’s a matter of scale. Starbucks are huge compared to AMT, but at least they’re moving in the right direction.
I think it’s time to start looking at Nescafe and the supermarket coffee brands.