Cost of coffee.indd - RISC

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aim a fair price? ◆ To analyse the PR strategies used in the booklet The Coffee Cycle. outcome ◆ An understanding of how businesses try to protect their reputation from criticism. what you need Send off for the booklet The Coffee Cycle from: The Corporate Affairs Manager, Nestlé UK Ltd, St George’s House, Croydon CR9 1NR Tel: 020 8686 3333. The Coffee Cycle is a very well produced example of corporate PR. It communicates many messages about Nestlé and its operations and would make an ideal subject for detailed project work. Decide whether groups of participants will analyse the whole booklet or just a section, eg the supply chain or price, and make appropriate sets of single-sided photocopies. Photocopies of Actionpages: A fair price?, p27, A good deal for growers?, p29; flip chart paper; highlighter pens; glue. If you need to see detailed examples of deconstructing text and images look at the activities Every picture… and Between the lines from the Seeing through the spin teaching pack. These can be downloaded from: www.babymilkaction.org/spin. what you do s Brainstorm: Can you name any products made by Nestlé? What is your attitude to Nestlé? Why? s Explain that all organisations produce publicity materials to communicate their values or raise awareness of their activities to their various audiences. The group will be analysing a booklet produced by Nestlé on “how coffee is grown, harvested, bought and sold and converted into Nescafé around the world”. s Hand out Actionpage: A fair price? They will use the Actionpage to analyse the booklet, focusing on the messages communicated through its text, images and design. s Divide into small groups and distribute sets of photocopies. Each page should be mounted on a sheet on flip chart paper. This provides space for comments and analysis in the margins. s At some point all participants should get an opportunity to study the original booklet to get a better appreciation of its overall message and production values. whole group discussion s Display the analyses and allow time to look at other groups’ work. Ask one or two groups to explain the main points of their analysis. Bring out more general issues. ◆ What is the overall message of the booklet? ◆ How well do text, photos and design (use of colour, layout, fonts) work together to communicate this message? ◆ Why has Nestlé devoted resources to publishing this booklet? ◆ Who is the main audience? ◆ Does the booklet make a difference to your attitudes towards Nestlé? ◆ Are you more likely to buy Nestlé products? ◆ On the information provided in the booklet would you consider that Nestlé’s “buying policies offer coffee producers a fair deal”? Why/why not? ◆ What issues are not addressed in the leaflet? ◆ How can you judge whether Nestlé’s description of the world coffee market is an accurate picture of the situation of coffee producers? 24
what you do s Distribute Actionpage: A good deal for growers?, which provides detailed analysis of the claims made by Nestlé in the booklet and case studies of the difficulties faced by growers. s Ask the groups to look at the booklet in the light of the comments made in the Actionpage. whole group discussion ◆ Which comments made in the Actionpage match with points raised in the groups’ initial analysis? ◆ Which of the comments are a fair criticism of Nestlé’s role in the world coffee market? ◆ How far do the comments change your reaction to The Coffee Cycle? ◆ In the light of the comments do you think Nestlé gives a “good deal to coffee growers”? key ideas ◆ Businesses are very concerned about safeguarding their reputation, and employ public relations (PR) consultants to devise strategies to create and maintain a positive image. A brand with positive associations will be able to command better prices and profits, maintain shareholder confidence, introduce new products and recover from a crisis. ◆ ‘Reputation Mangement’ brings an integrated approach to creating a positive corporate image among all ‘stakeholders’ – customers, employees, investors, etc. This includes: community involvement, eg sponsorship of sports, arts or education and lobbying politicians. ◆ Businesses which have been criticised about their operations because of their impact on the environment, abuse of human rights etc, respond with well-publicised PR initiatives which target public opinion, policy makers and the media. ◆ ‘Ethical consumerism’ is a growing market, eg ethical pension funds, eco-tourism, ethical sourcing. By December 2004, ground coffee sold under the Fairtrade Mark accounted for 18.8% of the UK market volume, compared with 14% in 2002. ◆ The Coffee Cycle (published in 1999) is a response to the implication “that coffees which do not carry a fair trade mark are in any way unfair”. By explaining the whole production and marketing process and describing the ‘partnership’ Nestlé has with producers it provides a very reasonable and convincing case for its claim to give “a good deal to coffee growers.” The images reinforce the picture of a well ordered mechanism producing our cup of coffee. Although it is very well produced and informative, the booklet gives a very onesided picture of the world coffee trade. It ignores the real hardship and insecurity faced by many small producers. While farmers take the risks, manufacturers like Nestlé always make a healthy profit from the final product, whatever the fluctuations in world prices. ◆ It suggests that buying direct from growers is automatically ‘fair’. Although the booklet claims that Nestlé does “usually pay a premium over the market price”, the fact is it does not meet the Fairtrade standard which gives small producers a guaranteed price which covers production costs, a living wage and a premium to support community development. ◆ Under the certified Fairtrade Mark scheme, advance payments ensure that farmers have the security to keep out of debt and free from unscrupulous middlemen. The production chain is independently monitored to ensure that ethical standards are maintained. Coffee is bought direct from the farmers’ own democratic organisations which are regularly consulted over what constitutes a fair price. Farmers do not have to pay to join a fairtrade scheme – costs are borne by the companies who retail Fairtrade Mark coffee. Nestlé does not subscribe to this system of safeguards. It does not even have a fairtrade brand for the growing ethical consumer market. ◆ Nestlé still sources 85% of its coffee on the world market and buys about 12% of the world’s crop. The market price can drop to less than half the cost of production. When world prices are low, thousands of small coffee farmers lose their land. Although Nestlé is not directly to blame, it is the major player in a system where power lies with middlemen, processors, exporters, dealers and roasters, and where small growers and plantation workers struggle to make a living. Much of the world’s coffee is grown on plantations where working conditions are poor and pesticide use is abused. 25
Page 2 and 3: credits devised, written and design
Page 4 and 5: “ A company that adopts and imple
Page 6 and 7: the instructions What you need - ge
Page 8 and 9: glossary bluewash The ploy used by
Page 10 and 11: coffee file Coffee: adaptation of A
Page 12 and 13: 8 the story of coffee D the coffee
Page 14 and 15: wet method D requires the use of re
Page 16 and 17: 200 Robusta coffee market 1986-2005
Page 18 and 19: drinker roasted, ground, instant CO
Page 20 and 21: 16 key ideas ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆
Page 22 and 23: Profit margins are high - Nestlé h
Page 24 and 25: key ideas ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ In respon
Page 26 and 27: • because of past price fluctuati
Page 30 and 31: ◆ Although in The coffee cycle Ne
Page 32 and 33: s Analyse the photos used and the o
Page 34 and 35: ◆ ◆ Real costs A supply and dem
Page 36 and 37: aim how fair’s fair? ◆ To explo
Page 38 and 39: actionpage: how fair’s fair? s Re
Page 40 and 41: 1990 european fair trade associatio
Page 42 and 43: Actionpage: Pros & cons 38 PROS Gua
Page 44 and 45: aim fair marketing ◆ To analyse t
Page 46: Actionpage: Logo ® 42
Page 49 and 50: actionpage: press release Statement
Page 51 and 52: appendix 1: the coffee crisis The I
Page 53 and 54: demand sides in which the coffee cr
Page 55 and 56: demonstrating that traditional shad
Page 57 and 58: appendix 4: co-op’s fairtrade cof
Page 59 and 60: appendix 5: mugged introduction The
Page 61 and 62: women earn less, work longer, have
Page 63 and 64: appendix 6: rescue plan A Coffee Re
Page 65 and 66: Consumer governments 1 Provide poli
Page 67 and 68: joining forces we believe that we w
Page 69 and 70: of shortfalls that occur (see Nestl
Page 71 and 72: appendix 8: robbing coffee’s crad
Page 73 and 74: appendix 9: behind the mask the rea
Page 75 and 76: • change the law to enable people
Page 77 and 78: Fair Trade in Action - KS 3-4 Fairt
Page 79 and 80:
ackground reading* Behind the mask:
Page 81 and 82:
useful contacts Anti-Slavery Intern
Page 83 and 84:
International Coffee Organisation w
Page 85 and 86:
isc Reading International Solidarit
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