Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ:SBUX), Fair Trade Foundation and
Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO) today met with
farmers at Dukunde Kawa, a cooperative that cultivates high-quality
coffee in central Rwanda. Today’s gathering was two fold, first for
Starbucks and Fairtrade to listen and learn from farmers’ experiences
and secondly, to share details around the new Small Farmer Support
Initiative (SFSI) which was jointly introduced in April 2009.
Founded in 2000, Dukunde
Kawa Cooperative has approximately 4,000 members organized in three
groups around three coffee washing stations which the cooperative
operates in Gakenke district, Northern Province, Rwanda. This
cooperative became Fairtrade Certified in 2004. The farmers grow a
bourbon varietal coffee at altitudes ranging from 1,786 – 2,010 meters
in a setting that is typical of Rwanda—lush with ongoing green hills and
nearly every square inch of land planted with food crops or coffee.
Today’s activities included farm and wet mill tours, a demonstration of
a mobile cupping lab and a conversation about resources available for
farmers.
The SFSI is a three year pilot that will leverage the on-the-ground
expertise and resources that Starbucks and Fairtrade have in coffee
growing regions. The initiative will be supported by the Starbucks
Farmer Support Centers in Latin America and east Africa to facilitate
outreach in key regions across Latin America, Africa and Asia Pacific.
Farmers will have access to the $12.5 million Starbucks currently has
invested in farmer loan programs through social investment organizations
such as Root Capital, Verde Ventures and Calvert. Starbucks has an
additional goal to increase access to funding for farmer loans to those
related organizations to $20 million by 2015 as part of the Starbucks™
Shared Planet™ commitment to ethical sourcing. Together, the
organizations hope to increase the participation of small-scale farmers
in the global specialty coffee market.
About Starbucks
Starbucks Coffee Company provides an uplifting experience that enriches
people’s lives one moment, one human being, one extraordinary cup of
coffee at a time. To share in the experience, visit www.starbucks.com.
About the FAIRTRADE Mark and Fairtrade Foundation
The FAIRTRADE Mark is a certification mark and a registered trademark of
Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) of which the
Fairtrade Foundation is the UK member. This independent consumer label
appears on 4,500 retail and catering products in the UK. Today, more
than 7 million people - farmers, workers and their families - across 59
developing countries benefit from the international Fairtrade system.
About Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO)
FLO is a non-profit, multi-stakeholder association that encompasses a
global network of Fairtrade organizations that are actively involved in
supporting and empowering producers, raising consumer awareness and
campaigning for changes in the rules of conventional trade. FLO’s role
is to develop and review the standards that Fairtrade producers must
meet, and the terms of trade for importers, exporters and retailers. FLO
also directly helps producers to gain Fairtrade certification and to
develop market opportunities.
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Starbucks Coffee Company
Lara Wyss, 206-318-7100
press@starbucks.com
or
Edelman
Meredith
Bell, 323-202-1042
meredith.bell@edelman.com
Emma
Noble, +44 20 3047 2211 (UK Media)
emma.noble@edelman.com
