Poor Farmer

At least, conceptually. Mary Crane asks on the Forbes, “So when your social responsibility agenda makes your company a target, is continuing your CSR program worth the headache?” Keith Slack of Oxfam sees it differently on Putting Teeth in Corporate Social Responsibility . “Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a fashionable, if not particularly well-defined, term in recent years.”, Keith said adding, “A key component of the general discourse around CSR has been so-called multi-stakeholder initiatives, which bring together corporations, governments, and non-governmental organizations to talk about and in some cases develop mechanisms for addressing, particular areas of concern.” Keith thinks the voluntary CSR initiatives are toothless and thus “lack any real enforcement mechanism for sanctioning corporations that fail to comply with the principles or standards promoted by the initiatives.” ” Putting teeth into CSR is a challenge. Incentivizing lenders and purchasers to car...

Chronological order of major events in the Starbucks vs. Ethiopia dispute over coffee names 2004 : Starbucks filed application to register “Shirkina Sun-Dried Sidamo” trademark. Ethiopia asked Starbucks to drop its application because the country is preparing to register the names Sidamo and Harar; Starbucks refused to talk 2005 March : The Government of Ethiopia filed applications with USPTO to trademark Harrar, Harar, Sidamo and Yirgacheffe 2 006* : NCA filed a letter of protest asking Ethiopia's application to register all the names be denied. Starbucks then drop its application for “Shirkina Sun-Dried Sidamo” but continued to ignore Ethiopia's call to discuss. Ethiopia's application for Yirgacheffe trademark has been granted; members of the contesting party expressed their regrets for lack of preparations to block it. Ethiopia continued to seek Starbucks' voluntary agreement acknowledging the country's ownership of the names Sidamo and Harar 2006 October : Oxfam...

Breaking its silence , the government disclosed details of Starbucks CEO Jim Donald’s Ethiopia visit to the public. The Embassy in Washington D.C., also known for its antiquated business styles even at Ethiopia’s standards, posted the press release on its website today. As a result, we now know that the CEO and his team of executives have not succeeded in their attempts to influence the authorities either. As expected, Starbucks’ executives have expressed their “willingness to help the poor farmers and to promote Ethiopian fine coffees.” It is not clear, however, if the executives have visited the farmers’ living conditions. The press release reads, “Both parties agreed to cooperate and work together in the protection and use of the Intellectual Property Rights of Ethiopia’s specialty coffee names and for Starbucks to promote high quality Ethiopian coffees produced under the umbrella of C.A.F.E (Coffee and Farmer Equity) practices.” I am not a fan of the C.A.F.E. practices because the...

Starbucks CEO Meets with Ethiopia Over Ownership of Coffee Names (Pic credit: scidev.net) To: National Desk Contact: Helen DaSilva 617-728-2409 or 617-331-2984, or Laura Rusu 202-496-3620 or 202-459-3739, both of Oxfam America WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 /U.S. Newswire/ -- International aid agency Oxfam welcomed Tuesday's meeting between Starbucks CEO Jim Donald and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, but urged the international coffee giant to stop dragging its feet before the holidays, and instead recognize Ethiopia's ownership of its coffee names and the enormous benefits that ownership could bring to the 15 million poor Ethiopians who depend on coffee for their livelihood. "It's significant that after a year of trying to engage Starbucks on trademarks, the company finally sat down to discuss the issue directly with Ethiopia," said Seth Petchers, Oxfam International's Make Trade Fair campaign coffee lead. "Starbucks must now follow up with immediate action to recogn...

When masks of “Corporate Social Responsibility” (CSR) accidentally fall off, the true nature of globalization is revealed. Thanks to The Forbes , CSR now stands for , at least to me, Continuing Slavery at a Remote (because slavery is illegal in the constitutions governing the business laws.) In my view, the following article concludes, the price Starbucks pays for the specialty coffees - under the C.A.F.E. practices - in the amount of $1.28/lp should be enough for Ethiopian farmers. If not, the CSR, along with its C.A.F.E. program, should be taken away because people are not thankful anyways! The magazine goes on to discourse that we should be happy (and probably proud of the “smart”, read unethical, business strategies the company followed because) Starbucks is good to its employees. The poor farmers would admire such neo-colonialist rhetoric since they do not know that Starbucks sells Shirkina Sun Dried Sidamo Coffee for $27/lp. [The Forbes article is posted below to provoke healthy...

7 Comments on the trademark issue prompted by " The government must start to talk publicly " Anonymous said... I really do not see the point of fighting with Starbucks when the govt does nothing even minimal to help the coffee farmers at a local level. Why should the govt. be allowed to own the trademark when the govt. does not even allow the coffee farmers to own their land? I don't trust our government is working for the benefit of the Ethiopian farmer. In fact, I am concerned that this battle will now encourage Starbucks ot not increase their sale of Ethiopian coffee. November 25, 2006 3:17:00 PM PST Anonymous said... Thank you for your very useful and informative blog about the Starbucks brouhaha. I honestly I'm having a hard time figuring out all the twists and turns in the arguments as far as all parties are concerned. But I do have some preliminary comments/questions: 1)I agree that this is a good move on the part of the government to shift the balance of power...

Madeleine Acey, Enterprise Editor, Times Online, November 27, 2006 Academic warns American chain that customers will go elsewhere if it places profit before ethics Starbucks was accused yesterday of “playing Russian roulette” with its brand as a row over prices for Ethiopian coffee farmers intensified. (Pic: Christian Aid) As an Oxford academic lambasted the American coffee shops chain, Jim Donald, Starbucks’ chief executive, was preparing to visit Ethiopia tomorrow for talks with Meles Zenawi, its Prime Minister, The Times has learnt. Douglas Holt, the L’Oréal Professor of Marketing at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School, accused Starbucks of hypocrisy and abuse of power and said that the company was in danger of damaging its name among its educated middle-class customers by opposing Addis Ababa’s attempts to trademark Ethiopia’s coffee varieties in the United States. The international coffee chain had worked hard to cultivate a progressive image, selling fair trade and “ethical”...

It is high time that the government in Addis and its Embassy here in the US must talk about the trademark issue openly to the public. Enough for the silence! The anti-poverty organizations’ innovative and sophisticated approach to eradicate poverty in Ethiopia is admirable. Utilizing the IP initiative for development will undoubtedly have a lasting positive impact on the coffee sector in Ethiopia. However, the coffee sector as we know it is composed of the poor farmers, a chain of rural merchants, middlemen, and exporters. The proportionate size of the revenue realized by those farmers, who travel bare foot for hours through ruthless situations only to end up selling their coffees to the roadside merchants at the nearby rural village, is at the bottom end of the coffee trade chain even at local standards. The farmers are exploited not only by the world’s giant coffee roasters but also by the greedy and merciless middlemen that do not have sympathy for the producers. Coffee farmers in E...

The media campaign spearheaded by Oxfam has sparked a widespread discussion among the public. Starbucks’ business tactics also have made their way out, through its press releases, only leaving readers perplexed. I hope the following Q&A will clarify some of the questions surrounding the trademark issues being debated throughout the past few weeks. As far as my own research goes, this Fine Coffee Trademark Licensing Initiative is part of an innovative and sophisticated strategy to claim a greater share of the export value of its products and which rightly belongs to its people. The Fine Coffee Trademark Licensing Initiative aims at securing Ethiopia’s legal ownership of its specialty coffee names through trademark registration. The project is funded in part by the UK’s Department for International Development. According to Oxfam, “intellectual property assets such as technological know-how, patents, trademarks, brand names and copyrights increasingly make up the majority of the pro...

"Sometimes you have to turn questions upside down to find the right answer. If trademarking Ethiopia’s Specialty coffees translates to a gain of $88 million annually for the poor farmer, why is it not helpful to trademark? Who is the legitimate owner of the names Sidamo, Yirgacheffe, and Harar? How come it was ok for Starbucks to use ‘Sidamo’ when it applied in 2004 (later dropped) for ‘Shirkina Sundried Sidamo’ trademark?" - read more at "Starbucks' prescription for Ethiopia: GI certification or chat ."

Oxfam Press Release - 16 November 2006 More than 70,000 sign Oxfam petition calling on Starbucks to sign licensing agreement to recognise Ethiopia’s ownership rights to coffee names As of today over 70,000 people have taken Oxfam’s online action urging coffee giant Starbucks to review its position in relation to Ethiopia’s attempts to claim ownership of the country’s most famous coffee names. The public has mobilised impressively since Oxfam revealed the obstacles faced by Ethiopia to gain more value from its high quality coffee beans. Ethiopia, an extremely poor country that produces some of the best coffee in the world, is trying to gain greater leverage in a supply chain that is weighed down by injustice and inequity and biased against producers. Control of its coffee names through trademarking would give Ethiopia a fairer share of the profits of the global coffee trade. “It’s amazing to see how many people have been moved to take action,” said Seth Petchers, Oxfam International’s M...

Each year, coffee companies rake in profit by the billions. Last year alone, Starbucks earned $5.8 billion in net revenues. Yet, for every cup of coffee Starbucks sells ($1.80 for a venti), poor farmers in coffee-growing countries like Ethiopia make about three cents. Call on Starbucks to give farmers their fair share of coffee profits. Cheap overseas labor and production is nothing new for large corporations. But Starbucks claims to be different. Their website states: "Starbucks strongly believes in the importance of building mutually-beneficial relationships with coffee farmers and coffee communities with which we work." In reality, Starbucks rakes in premium profits that Ethiopian brand names command, while the farmers providing their supply have been left behind in poverty. With as many as 15 million Ethiopians dependent on coffee revenues, the Ethiopian government has asked Starbucks to sign a licensing agreement that will give Ethiopia trademark control over the names o...

www.ethiomedia.com By Wondwossen Mezlekia, Seattle Novemeber 13, 2006 Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, and Starbucks, the world’s Specialty coffee giant, dominated headlines of the major media outlets in an uncanny coming together. The controversy over Ethiopia’s trademark application for its finest coffees was brought to the public’s attention by Oxfam, a non-profit, anti-poverty organization after several months of unsuccessful attempts to convince Starbucks to lift its block on Ethiopia’s application to own its coffee names. Starbucks swears its hands are not behind the bump on the trademark process but refused to talk about it despite repeated calls by Ethiopia and Oxfam. It took a good deal of pressure from consumers responding to calls by Oxfam to bring Starbucks to the table, and even when it did so, it came with strings and excuses that lead to nowhere. The Ethiopian Fine Coffee Trademark Licensing Initiative, a project funded in part by the UK’s Department for International...

Information on this page may change without a notice --------------- -- Coffee is one of the most valuable products in world trade, in many years second in value only to oil as a source of foreign exchange to developing countries. -- A mature coffee tree will produce 1 to 11/2 pounds of coffee per growing season. It takes 2,000 hand-picked Arabica coffee cherries to make a roasted pound of coffee -- or approximately 4,000 beans. -- Brazil produces about one-third of the coffee in the world, twice as much as Colombia and Vietnam, which vie for second position. Indonesia, Mexico, India, Guatemala and Ethiopia are also major producers. -- In 2000, the United States imported 21-million bags (132 pounds each) of coffee. The largest suppliers were Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Vietnam and Guatemala. The total value was $1.7-billion. -- 52 percent of the adult population of the United States over 18 years of age drinks coffee every day. -- Americans drink some 300-million cups of coffee a day, co...