When we buy coffee this way, it helps foster a better future for farmers and a more stable climate for the planet, and it helps create a long-term supply of the high-quality beans we’ve been carefully blending, roasting and packing fresh for more than forty years.
Over the last decade, Conservation International has helped us develop buying guidelines that address our principles for ethical sourcing. Called Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, these guidelines help our farmers grow coffee in a way that’s better for both people and the planet. C.A.F.E. Practices is a comprehensive set of measurable standards focused on the following four areas:
All coffee must meet Starbucks standards of high quality.
Transparency is required. Suppliers must submit evidence of payments made throughout the coffee supply chain to demonstrate how much of the price Starbucks pays for green (unroasted) coffee gets to the farmer.
Measures evaluated by third-party verifiers are in place to ensure safe, fair and humane working conditions, including protecting the rights of workers and providing adequate living conditions. Compliance with minimum-wage, child labor and forced labor requirements is mandatory.
Measures in place to manage waste, protect water quality, conserve water and energy, preserve biodiversity and reduce agrochemical use.
We aim to have 100% of our coffee certified or verified by an independent third party.
Starbucks bought over 428 million pounds of coffee in fiscal 2011. Some 86% of that – 367 million pounds worth – from C.A.F.E. Practices–approved suppliers. We paid an average price of $2.38 per pound for our premium green (unroasted) coffee in 2011 – up from $1.56 per pound in 2010. Working together with Conservation International (CI), we have conducted an analysis of our C.A.F.E. Practices results to ensure that the impacts on the farmers support the goals of the program, and that we are continually evolving the program to meet the needs of farmers.
CI’s analysis of the farmers participating in C.A.F.E. Practices performance shows that, over time, farmers continue to ensure their children are attending school and that the remaining forest on their land is conserved, while suppliers are achieving higher performance and improving practices. The reach of the program is vast, spanning 20 markets, affecting over 1 million workers each year and encouraging responsible practices on 102,000 hectares each year.
Fairtrade coffee empowers small-scale farmers organized in democratically-run cooperatives to invest in their farms and communities, protect the environment, and develop the business skills necessary to compete in the global marketplace. Starbucks began purchasing Fairtrade coffee in 2000. Since then we’ve paid over $16 million in Fairtrade premiums (on top of the purchase price of green coffee), which are used by producer organizations for social and economic investments at the community and organizational level. In addition, over $10 million was paid to Fairtrade licensing initiatives that support the international certification system (FLO-Cert), producer services and awareness building around the benefits of Fairtrade.
Organic coffee is grown using methods and materials that have a lower impact on the environment. Organic farming practices help replenish and maintain soil health, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers and build biologically diverse agriculture.
Starbucks purchased close to 10 million pounds of certified organic coffee in fiscal 2011.
When we buy coffee this way, it helps foster a better future for farmers and a more stable climate for the planet, and it helps create a long-term supply of the high-quality beans we’ve been carefully blending, roasting and packing fresh for more than forty years.
Over the last decade, Conservation International has helped us develop buying guidelines that address our principles for ethical sourcing. Called Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, these guidelines help our farmers grow coffee in a way that’s better for both people and the planet. C.A.F.E. Practices is a comprehensive set of measurable standards focused on the following four areas:
All coffee must meet Starbucks standards of high quality.
Transparency is required. Suppliers must submit evidence of payments made throughout the coffee supply chain to demonstrate how much of the price Starbucks pays for green (unroasted) coffee gets to the farmer.
Measures evaluated by third-party verifiers are in place to ensure safe, fair and humane working conditions, including protecting the rights of workers and providing adequate living conditions. Compliance with minimum-wage, child labor and forced labor requirements is mandatory.
Measures in place to manage waste, protect water quality, conserve water and energy, preserve biodiversity and reduce agrochemical use.
We aim to have 100% of our coffee certified or verified by an independent third party.
Starbucks bought over 428 million pounds of coffee in fiscal 2011. Some 86% of that – 367 million pounds worth – from C.A.F.E. Practices–approved suppliers. We paid an average price of $2.38 per pound for our premium green (unroasted) coffee in 2011 – up from $1.56 per pound in 2010. Working together with Conservation International (CI), we have conducted an analysis of our C.A.F.E. Practices results to ensure that the impacts on the farmers support the goals of the program, and that we are continually evolving the program to meet the needs of farmers.
CI’s analysis of the farmers participating in C.A.F.E. Practices performance shows that, over time, farmers continue to ensure their children are attending school and that the remaining forest on their land is conserved, while suppliers are achieving higher performance and improving practices. The reach of the program is vast, spanning 20 markets, affecting over 1 million workers each year and encouraging responsible practices on 102,000 hectares each year.
Fairtrade coffee empowers small-scale farmers organized in democratically-run cooperatives to invest in their farms and communities, protect the environment, and develop the business skills necessary to compete in the global marketplace. Starbucks began purchasing Fairtrade coffee in 2000. Since then we’ve paid over $16 million in Fairtrade premiums (on top of the purchase price of green coffee), which are used by producer organizations for social and economic investments at the community and organizational level. In addition, over $10 million was paid to Fairtrade licensing initiatives that support the international certification system (FLO-Cert), producer services and awareness building around the benefits of Fairtrade.
Organic coffee is grown using methods and materials that have a lower impact on the environment. Organic farming practices help replenish and maintain soil health, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers and build biologically diverse agriculture.
Starbucks purchased close to 10 million pounds of certified organic coffee in fiscal 2011.
Once roasted, coffee begins to lose its flavor the longer it’s exposed to air and moisture. We recommend that you store it in an airtight container in a cool, dark place and grinding it just before brewing. Coffee in an unopened FlavorLock™ bag will stay fresh for several months.
Our unique FlavorLock™ technology uses a special one-way valve that allows the carbon dioxide released by freshly roasted coffee beans to escape a sealed coffee bag without allowing flavor-robbing oxygen to get in. All Starbucks coffee is sealed in our airtight FlavorLock™ bags within two hours of roasting so that it stays fresh until you’re ready to use it.
For the freshest tasting coffee, we continue to recommend starting with whole beans and grinding them fresh for each pot. Or, if you prefer, you can take your whole bean coffee to your local retail store and ask them for a customized grind.
Drip makers perform best with a grind specifically for a flat bottom or cone type filter. All Starbucks stores can grind coffee to this specification. Espresso machines are grind-sensitive and require a very fine grind, 30-35 seconds in a blade grinder. Slow and fast shots are often caused by a grind that is too fine or too coarse, frozen or refrigerated espresso beans and tamping coffee too hard or not firmly enough.
Once roasted, coffee begins to lose its flavor the longer it’s exposed to air and moisture. We recommend that you store it in an airtight container in a cool, dark place and grinding it just before brewing. Coffee in an unopened FlavorLock™ bag will stay fresh for several months.
Our unique FlavorLock™ technology uses a special one-way valve that allows the carbon dioxide released by freshly roasted coffee beans to escape a sealed coffee bag without allowing flavor-robbing oxygen to get in. All Starbucks coffee is sealed in our airtight FlavorLock™ bags within two hours of roasting so that it stays fresh until you’re ready to use it.
For the freshest tasting coffee, we continue to recommend starting with whole beans and grinding them fresh for each pot. Or, if you prefer, you can take your whole bean coffee to your local retail store and ask them for a customized grind.
Drip makers perform best with a grind specifically for a flat bottom or cone type filter. All Starbucks stores can grind coffee to this specification. Espresso machines are grind-sensitive and require a very fine grind, 30-35 seconds in a blade grinder. Slow and fast shots are often caused by a grind that is too fine or too coarse, frozen or refrigerated espresso beans and tamping coffee too hard or not firmly enough.
