Other responsible alternatives

In the last two decades, a sustainable coffee movement has emerged that tries to create alternative market opportunities that pay farmers decent prices, provide incentives for organic production and reward farmers for practicing good stewardship of their natural resources.
There are many labels all claiming to be the ethical alternative. This page is an overview on a few of them.

Starbucks is a coffee company that is leading the way in ethical coffee purchasing.
Starbucks is committed to strengthening coffee farms for the future. They recognize that there is no one simple way of doing this and so Starbucks have introduced the Integrated Approach.
The Integrated Approach

In 2001, Starbucks established a partnership with Conservation International in order to create a set of socially responsible guidelines that ensured high quality coffee and promoted fair relationships with farmers, workers and their communities whilst also helping the environment, this was originally called the Preferred Supplier Program.

Following the multi-year pilot project Starbucks applied its own experience and stakeholder feedback to pioneer a coffee buying programme that strives to improve the lives of farmers and increase the amount of high-quality coffee that is grown, processed and traded in a sustainable manner.

C.A.F.E Practices was formally introduced in 2004.

C.A.F.E. Practices are founded on socially, environmentally and economically responsible coffee buying guidelines that have evolved to through the contributions of coffee farmers, sustainability experts, and Conservation International (CI).

In 2008 The Fairtrade Labelling Organisation International (FLO) joined Conservation International (CI) and the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) as partners in the Starbucks™ Shared Planet™ commitment to ethical sourcing.

Shared Planet is the label under which all coffee purchased under the C.A.F.E Practices guidelines will be sold

Starbucks chose the name C.A.F.E. Practices to emphasise the importance of farmer equity in relations to Starbucks coffee.

In 2008 77% (295 million lbs) of coffee was purchased through the C.A.F.E Practices programme by 2015 the goal is for that to be 100%. (This goal incorporates coffees purchased through Fairtrade and Organic suppliers)

C.A.F.E practices have four main criteria of which farmers must obtain independent verification to prove they meet these standards. The four criteria are as follows:

• Product Quality

• Economic Accountability

• Social Responsibility

• Environmental Leadership.

There are some “Zero Tolerance” criteria (e.g. payment of minimum wage, no child labour, traceability), which MUST be complied in order to be part of the program. For the other criteria, however, the program establishes a quantitative scoring system. So even if you start with a low score, you can be part of the program, and then gradually improve your performance in the course of the following years.

Essential criteria of the standard:

1. Financial transparency

•Including traceability of the coffee back to the farmer

2. Social Responsibility

•Payment of minimum wage, compliance with national laws on overtime payment
•Freedom of association and collective bargaining
•Vacation and sick leave program
•No child labour, discrimination, forced labour
•Decent housing conditions for workers living onsite
•Access to education, medical care
•Safe pesticide handling

3. Environmental Leadership (Farm)

•Watercourse and water quality protection
•Controlling soil erosion
•Improving soil fertility
•Shade cover
•Wildlife conservation, natural conservation areas
•Ecological pest and disease management
•Management and monitoring practices

4. Environmental Leadership (Processing)

•Minimize water consumption (wet mill)
•Minimize water pollution
•Waste recycling
•Minimize energy use
This program not only tackles the primary concerns of The Fairtrade Labelling Organisation, (FLO) but also incorporates many of the goals of Organic farming practices.

Rainforest Alliance

Rainforest Alliance standards are intended to protect the environment and the rights of workers.

The basic guidelines are called the Sustainable Agriculture Standard

Environmental standards

Coffee farms must maintain (or restore) natural forest cover to achieve 40 percent shade coverage. The standard calls for at least 70 trees per hectare (about 2.5 acres) and at least 12 native species. Farms can still be certified if they don’t meet these standards but can show they have a plan to meet the goal and are working toward it.

Farmers are not allowed to alter natural water courses. While they can use chemicals, such as pesticides, they must maintain buffer zones of natural vegetation between the crop areas and areas used by humans, including public roads.

The standards also prohibit such activities as trafficking in wild animals, destruction of ecosystems, dumping untreated wastewater, and other harmful practices.

Labour standards

The Rainforest Alliance standards try to limit child labour.

Children under 15 cannot be hired and minors are not supposed to lift more than 20% of their body weight or have to work on steep slopes or in dangerous areas.

They should be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Farmers are expected to take steps to allow minors to continue their education.

Farmers must have non-discriminatory hiring practices and must pay legal minimum wages.

The downside

A major criticism of the Rainforest Alliance standard is that as little as 30 percent of the coffee in a container can be grown under Rainforest Alliance criteria and the coffee can still carry the Rainforest Alliance seal.

Bird Friendly coffee

Bird Friendly is a certification created by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (SMBC), which is part of the National Zoo based in Washington, D.C. Bird Friendly standards are the strictest of the third-party environmental standards. Certified coffees carry this seal.
Environmental standards
The SBMC requires that producers meet the requirements for organic certification first, and then meet additional criteria to ensure they are maintaining the forest cover that provides habitat for birds and other wildlife. As a result, Bird Friendly coffee offers all the environmental benefits of organic coffee.
The additional standards, however, require a minimum of 40 percent shade coverage and also make recommendations for the diversity and size of trees that make up the forest canopy. These standards ensure a variety of habitats that supports a wealth of wildlife. Surveys by biologists have found that a shade coffee plantation is home to almost as much biodiversity as untouched forest.

Labour standards

The Bird Friendly standards are not intended to address labour conditions, but the requirement for organic certification does create some benefits for workers.

The downside

There are costs involved, as with any of the third-party certification programs. In many cases, the obstacle to Bird Friendly certification is not with the SBMC’s requirements, but with the difficulty and cost of obtaining organic certification, which may require years of effort and expenses before there is any return for the grower.