The state of Fair Trade coffee in Canada

After Starbucks announced that it will market Fair Trade certified coffee in the United States, Straight Goods looks into the Canadian situation

By: Robert Baron

  Last week Straight Goods featured an announcement by TransFair USA and Starbucks that Starbucks will market Fair Trade certified coffee in its stores and on the Web. Fair trade certified importers pay slightly higher prices for coffee so that growers are better paid and work under better conditions.
 

Fair Trademark Canada already has 40 companies licensed to carry Fair Trade certified coffee and has requests for applications from another half-dozen

  According to Bob Thomson, Executive Director of Fair Trademark Canada - an affiliate, along with TransFair USA, of FLO (Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International) - the Starbucks stores in Canada will require special treatment. Because Starbucks does not roast or package coffee in Canada, package design details will need to be worked out in conjunction with Transfair USA.
  Fair Trademark Canada already has 40 companies licensed to carry Fair Trade certified coffee and has requests for applications from another half-dozen. Two hundred thousand pounds of green beans were licensed under Fair Trademark Canada arrangements in 1999. Tim Horton's is one of the very few big players Fair Trademark Canada hasn't yet approached; many other large Canadian companies have committed to 'fair trade' licensing.
 

Santiago Rivera, a member of the Fair Trade cooperative PRODECOOP, picks ripe coffee cherries on his farm in the Segovias region of Nicaragua. From www.transfairusa.org

  The benefits of 'fair trade' licensing, Thomson said, are felt most in Central America and Mexico, where most coffee consumed in North America is grown.
  Fair trade is a diverse movement. Some fair trade associations are spin-offs from NGO's working in the international development area. Others are collectives and still others are stand-alone trade associations. Alternative or ethical trade has been called the "fourth wave" of modern marketing. The first wave arose out of consumer concerns for product safety. That was followed by concerns for conservation and then for environmentally friendly products and production.
  Many people view fair trade as a bridge between southern producers and northern consumers; part of the struggle for global equality and justice. The goal is transformation of the current marketplace away from corporate control and towards sustainable development.
  To learn more about the fair trade movement in Canada and around the world visit the Fair Trademark Canada web site, called Fair Trade Online: www.web.net/fairtrade.

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