Starbucks Steps Up
Posted by Sandy Smith on A Nice Cuppa
Not too long ago, 
I was in line at a Starbucks in a thruway rest stop. While I stood there trying to rationalize paying over $3 for a single-serve Caffe Mocha, I thought I’d take the edge off my consumer guilt by checking the packaged goods on display for Fair Trade logos.
At first glance, I was disappointed. I knew Starbucks’ Café Estima Blend is Fair Trade Certified, but none of the three others (Gold Coast Blend, Komodo Dragon Blend, and Kenya) I checked were. I was starting to feel even worse about that Mocha, until I turned a package over and read the fine print on the side panel. Each package of coffee beans I looked at had a similar message, tailored regionally. Turns out that Starbucks is stepping up to the plate (or the to-go cup, as it were).
According to information on their packaging, which invites readers to view their Web site for more info, Starbucks employs a varied approach to corporate responsibility that integrates equity practices, loan funds to small-scale coffee farmers, social development programs in coffee-growing communities, and economic transparency, among other initiatives. This means different things in different places. For example, building a safe bridge to market in one area, a clean-water reservoir in another, schools and health-care clinics in still another. A visit to the corporate Web site also revealed that Starbucks supports the African Wildlife Fund, Save the Children, and MercyCorps.
This is all great stuff. Granted, it’s not going to make the Caffe Mocha an everyday event for me, but it is going to make me enjoy it a little bit more the next time I order one.
Picture courtesy of Starbucks.
