Poor Farmer

By Matt Goldman Yes! Weekly The coffee industry is now valued at $80 billion, making it one of the most lucrative commodities, second only to oil. Every day 2 billion lattes, mochas, cappuccinos and regular old cups of joe are served up worldwide. For many, coffee isn't just a morning pick me up, it's a lifestyle. In Trieste, Italy, where some of the best cups of coffee are made, baristas live by the mantra "wake up, smile... coffee." And people are willing to pay. A 16-ounce cup can go for as much as $4 at some corporate outfits. Ironically, in Sidama, Ethiopia, which supplies coffee beans to the prolific Starbucks Corp., growers on the verge of bankruptcy and famine are found literally praying for a fair price for their product. It's a staggering paradox. Tadessa Meskala, owner of the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, seeks to protect himself and his farmers from this blatant exploitation. The documentary Black Gold: Wake Up and Smell the Coffee, screened...

EIPO: New Website Provides Information on Ethiopia's Trademarking and Licensing Initiative CSRwire WASHINGTON, DC April, 9, 2007 Ethiopia’s Trademarking Initiative took an important step forward today with the launch of its dedicated website: www.ethiopiancoffeenetwork.com . "The aim of this initiative is to build a new form of partnership between Ethiopia and the coffee companies worldwide that sell our finest coffees - Sidamo, Yirgacheffe and Harar/Harrar. In this spirit, we invite you to join our network of licensed distributors, and we hope that the information provided in the Licensing Section gives you enough to start with the process," encouraged Getachew Mengistie, Ethiopian Intellectual Property Office. "Since late last year, Ethiopia's Trademarking Initiative has attracted literally thousands of articles, TV and radio coverage, and actions by more than 100,000 people who are direct supporters of Ethiopia. Yet amid this, sometimes it has been quite diffi...