Beyond the cup. - Starbucks

STARBUCKS RECOGNIZED FORC.A.F.E. PRACTICES BY THEWORLD ENVIRONMENT CENTERThe 2005 Gold Medal Awardfrom the World Environment Centerwas presented to Starbucks,recognizing the company’s leadershipin the development of C.A.F.E. Practices.President Oscar Berger of Guatemalapresented the prestigious award toHoward Schultz, Starbucks chairman,in Washington, D.C., in May 2005.Q: Why should I invest in C.A.F.E.Practices now that coffee priceshave gone up and I am alreadyearning more for my crops?– Hugo Davila, Las Carmelitas Farm, NicaraguaA: Market prices for coffee have always beenvolatile, rewarding farmers during the good timesbut hurting them when prices fall. To addressthe need for stability and to ensure a sustainablesupply of high-quality coffee for Starbucks, wedeveloped C.A.F.E. Practices. Starbucks givespreference to C.A.F.E. Practices suppliers bypaying premium prices that help farmers sustaintheir businesses and by potentially signing longtermcontracts. In other words, approved C.A.F.E.Practices suppliers have more security becausethey know that they have a buyer for their futurecrops – and that long-term buyer is Starbucks.Peter Torrebiarte (right), general manager of Starbucks Coffee Agronomy Companyin Costa Rica, recently visited the Santa Eduviges farm, an approved C.A.F.E.Practices supplier, and met with its foreman, Porfirio Obregon Ruiz.GOING FORWARDWhile much progress has been made implementing C.A.F.E.Practices, instituting such a pioneering effort is not easy. Forinstance, obtaining credible economic transparency for all ofour coffee contracts may take years.Given the volatility of world coffee prices, some suppliersmay question whether it makes sense to invest in the typeof sustainable measures required to participate in C.A.F.E.Practices. We encourage farmers to consider the benefits ofbuilding long-term relationships with Starbucks through theirparticipation in C.A.F.E. Practices, and to focus on improvingthe quality and sustainability of their coffee. By doing so, webelieve they are better protected from fluctuating prices.Starbucks has set aggressive goals for C.A.F.E. Practices,reflected in the amount of coffee we plan to purchase fromparticipating suppliers. (See page 19.) To meet this particulargoal, we need a larger base of approved suppliers and moretrained verifiers.Our motivation for opening Starbucks Coffee AgronomyCompany (Farmer Support Center) in Costa Rica twoyears ago was to work more closely with coffee farmers andsuppliers from all over the world, implement the guidelinesfor C.A.F.E. Practices and help farmers maintain and improvethe quality of their coffee. Having a presence there has alsoallowed us to have closer relationships with suppliers andgain greater insight into the production of high-quality,sustainable coffee.We will continue to extend C.A.F.E. Practices to East Africancoffee farmers and cooperatives. Additionally, Starbucksrecently aligned with the African Wildlife Foundation to workjointly with coffee cooperatives in Kenya to provide coffeequality training and encourage the adoption of sustainablecoffee practices.More information on C.A.F.E. Practices, including theguidelines and scoring system, can be found online atwww.scscertified.com/csrpurchasing/starbucks.html.22OUR WORLD OF PRODUCTS