The buzz about coffee

I’m a coffee addict.  Seriously, I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.  I’m a full blown addict.  Without my morning coffee, a headache hits by lunch time and the shakes start by mid afternoon.  If I start feeling sluggish, or don’t have time for coffee, I toss the beans straight from the jar into my mouth.  A little gritty, but quite yummy nonetheless.  That being said, though, I’m also a coffee snob.  I only drink fair trade coffee.  No exceptions.  I will gladly accept the headaches and shakes for the cause.  Why?  Fair trade coffee works with small family farms and coops…only.  And it’s not just about the wages and working conditions, but developing programs that help the community as well.  Not to mention it’s all slave free.  Those large seasonal plantations are famous for using child slaves.  As far as I’m concerned, there’s no caffeine buzz that’s worth the abuse of a child.  That reason alone is enough for me to refuse any coffee that isn’t fair trade.   Any time I walk into a new little coffee house, the first words I ask are, “Is your coffee fair trade?”  If the answer is yes, I go for the large mocha (sometimes with an extra shot or two of espresso).  If the answer is no, I walk out and go without.  It has always been an easy question.  At least up until now.  As some of you may have heard, Fair Trade USA (formerly called Transfair) is expanding their “fair trade” certification to include seasonal plantations.  While I appreciate their desire to expand the reach of fair trade, working with these plantations goes against everything fair trade has stood for.  It’s always been about the producer.  I can ask the question, “Who made this?” and actually get an answer.  I know I’m helping families and coops to pull out of poverty, not dumping money into large companies.  Without getting on a soapbox, it makes me sad.  And it makes it almost impossible to know which fair trade that coffee house is serving.   There’s still a fair trade certification that means something, and then there’s the watered down Fair Trade USA certification.  In a store, you can look for the logo (a guy holding scales).  In a coffee house, they may not know which fair trade they have.   I’m a bit at a loss on what to do.  I won’t water down my own standards as a result, so I guess I’m now limited to only those coffee houses that I already know support small farmers.  I’m talking about those edgy independent places that answered my question with just those words, “We only serve fair trade coffee that’s grown by small coops.”   I’m comforted to know that my coffee supplier here at the shop, Deans Beans, will also not be dropping their standards.  So, worst case, I’ll be dragging a bag of coffee or a travel mug full everywhere I go.  Looks like I may need to buy some more travel mugs.

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~ by silkrdlady on December 8, 2011.