Beyond the cup. - Starbucks

TEATazo Tea is one of several brands within StarbucksCorporation’s portfolio. Its teas are comprised of fresh singleestateteas, the finest botanicals and flavorful spices, blendedin small batches at Tazo’s headquarters in Portland, Oregon.When Starbucks assessed our environmental footprint in2000, we included a metric to track our purchases of certifiedorganic tea ingredients. While our purchases of certifiedorganic tea ingredients rose significantly in fiscal 2005, muchof this increase was influenced by our purchases of certifiedorganic sugar cane that is used in our liquid tea products. Areformulation of several of our tea liquid products is currentlyunderway and will eventually lead to the removal of organicsugar cane from Tazo’s products. (See graph below for organictea ingredients purchased.)Tazo believes the purchase of certified organic tea ingredientsis only one measure of sustainability. Therefore, Tazo is in theprocess of developing a broader strategy to more closely alignour tea purchasing practices with the company’s commitmentto sustainability. This holistic approach will build on the socialinvestment strategy that Tazo has established for tea-growingcommunities through a partnership with Mercy Corps. (Moreon page 40.) DAIRY AND BAKERY PRODUCTSFor all our food and beverage products, Starbucks upholdsour standards for high quality and ensures our products aresafe for consumption. In our U.S. stores a small percentage ofcustomers request organic and/or rBST-free dairy products.(rBST is a growth hormone given to dairy cows to increasemilk production.) In 2005, Starbucks continued to offerorganic milk as an option for our customers upon request.In 2004, Starbucks surveyed our dairy and bakery suppliers todetermine their current sustainability practices and whetherthey could comply with more stringent standards, should theybe imposed. We gleaned more from the responses our dairysuppliers provided than what we learned from our bakerysuppliers. Some findings from our dairy supplier survey were:• Dairy cooperatives supply most of the raw milkused to produce the dairy products we purchase.The involvement of these co-ops will be key to thesuccess of any future initiatives.• Very few co-ops can assure that their dairy products wererBST-free because milk is co-mingled from a varietyof dairies. Moreover, cooperatives vary in their policiesregarding rBST.• The only way to absolutely ensure rBST-free is to purchasecertified organic dairy products. The cost of using onlycertified organic milk would be significant and lead tohigher prices for our customers.Stakeholder EngagementIn August 2005, Starbucks met with representatives fromAs You Sow, a nonprofit organization that promotes corporateaccountability, and Trillium Asset Management Corporation,a socially responsible investment firm. We shared the results ofour dairy survey and explained the lack of customer demandfor the certified organic dairy products that are currentlyoffered in our stores. Starbucks agreed to continue to raise theissue of genetic modification with our suppliers; update ourwebsite with more information about genetic modification;and contact two of the company’s joint venture partners, thePepsi-Cola Company and Dreyers Grand Ice Cream, Inc.,regarding usage of genetically modified ingredients. Starbucksis in the process of meeting these commitments.29OUR WORLD OF PRODUCTS