There was a programme on telly last night about Fair Trade coffee (and chocolate etc) and I had a couple of questions.
I was wondering whether the money I pay for so-called “fairly traded” goods really goes to the farmers who grow the coffee. Is there any way of being sure that the higher price I pay benefits those who put in the work?
I’m not a big coffee drinker, but my parents (who love the stuff) claim that the Fair Trade coffee simply isn’t as high quality as the ‘premium’ supermarket brands etc - in fact, their main reason for not buying it is that it doesn’t taste as nice.
I guess the knowledge that workers are being exploited for my morning cuppa might sour the taste of any coffee, but what do other people think re. the taste?
In principle I think it is a great (and long overdue) idea, and I am all for “fair trade”, but if the product is mingin’ then I’d be a lot more reluctant to pay a much higher price for such goods.
Does anyone out there regularly by “fair trade” and have an opinion?
Cheers,
Rob S.
I drink a lot of coffee. My favourite is French Roast from the Trader Joe’s chain. Trader Joe’s is known for its organic food, low prices, and cheap beer, wine and spirits. I tried some of their Cafe Pajero (snicker) Fair Trade coffee. It wasn’t French Roast so it didn’t taste like what I’m used to; but it tasted the same as any other non-French roast I’ve had. IMO there is nothing wrong with the quality.
I heard a story about Fair Trade coffee a few months ago on NPR. I think the coffee growers are still being exploited, but at least they’re getting more than they were otherwise getting. I have a friend who bought a 10 ounce bag of Fair Trade beans at his local market for 99 cents. Geez, and I thouht I was getting a good deal on a 26 oz (737 g) can of French Roast for $7.49! Well, 99 cents is an amazingly low price and most coffee is not available that cheap; but it did make me wonder how much the farmer got for that bag of coffee.
I used to do voluntary work for a fair trade charity, and I’ll quite happily buy fair-traded coffee (and other products).
Because a lot of fair-trade foundations are charities, or operate in close association with charities, they are much more open to public inspection than a comparable large company might be. In the UK, you might want to check out the status of a charity with the Charities Commission - I don’t know what the equivalent US body/bodies might be.
As to the actual taste of the coffee… that’s just a matter of personal preference, isn’t it? (Mind you, I remember Campaign Coffee from Tanzania - that stuff was fierce when they started out…)
And, of course, “fair trade” doesn’t necessarily mean “cheap”; it just means a higher percentage of the retail price goes to the primary producer.
Here’s the website for TransFair USA, which seems to be associated somehow with Fair Trade, from a bag of StarBucks FairTrade coffee. I haven’t poked around there, so I don’t know what you might find.
I haven’t noticed any lesser quality in the bags of Fair Trade coffee I’ve bought.
My coffee of choice, for quite some time now, has been a medium roast from Equal Exchange. It has the advantage of being organic and shade grown, as well as fairly traded. And it’s a damn fine cup of coffee.