Here is an interesting concept, especially with regard to the “Go Green” trend that seems to be taking the country by storm. Fair trade coffee seems to be a good idea. After all, there are huge coffee plantations that are taking total advantage of coffee workers by paying them less than a fair wage. It is similar to the sweatshops in underprivileged areas like China and Bangladesh. Fair trade, on the other hand, is based on the coffee grower paying his workers at least minimum wage. It’s an admirable concept, right?
Well, not all growers who actually DO pay a fair wage have jumped on the Fair Trade band wagon. There are a couple of possible reasons. First, there is a ton of paperwork involved. Think about it – it is a government-type program, so paperwork is what has to happen. Mom and Pop farmers don’t want to mess with the bureaucracy. Second, there is a cost involved. It costs anywhere from $50 to $3000 dollars to qualify. Growers are struggling already and don’t want to fork over that kind of money.
So who qualifies? You guessed it. Big money people will up their wages to barely minimum standard and fill out the paperwork just so they can put on their coffee label that they are Fair Trade Certified.
Don’t get me wrong. Paying minimum wage is much better than sweatshop wage by a long shot. But the small coffee farmers are meeting (and actually surpassing) the minimum wage standard. Yet they are not qualifying for the right to put on their label that they are Fair Trade Certified.
One really good example of this is the small farmers in the Kona area of Hawaii. There are a number of coffee farms there that are producing some of the world’s best tasting coffee, and they are paying their help an excellent wage by world standards. Yet they are not Fair Trade Certified.
One good thing about this whole situation is that drinkers of Kona coffee know about the quality of the beans produced in that tiny area of coffee-dom. But it is time that the truth be told. Most Kona coffee is also Fair Trade.
That’s my opinion, and I’m stickin’ to it (until someone proves otherwise, lol)
JavaBean
