Poor Farmer

Wondwossen Mezlekia Jan 05, 2012 Starbucks Corporation announced today the release of a limited supply of Organic Ethiopia Sidamo® Coffee, for a short time starting January 10, 2012. This is the third year when Starbucks featured limited supplies of Ethiopian coffee since the trademark dispute with the government of Ethiopia ended in 2007.  In 2010, the company featured Limu®  and then Harar® in summer 2011, all in select stores. The current offering of Ethiopia Sidamo® appears to be more of a showcase for the company's new Quick Response (QR) code that it introduces for the first time. A QR code is a type of matrix barcode that was first created by Denso Wave, a subsidiary of Toyota, in 1994 to track vehicles during the manufacturing process. The tracking system, one of the most popular types of two-dimensional barcodes, is gaining popularity outside the automotive industry in the U.S., Canada, and China. In 2010, Starbucks said, ...

By Jennefer Sinco Kelleher Huffington Post HONOLULU -- Kona coffee growers want Hawaii's labeling law modified to provide more details on packages of coffee blends that contain Hawaii-grown beans. Currently, coffee blends sold in the state that contain Hawaii-grown coffee must disclose what percentage is grown in the islands, and it must be at least 10 percent. The Kona Coffee Farmers Association said Thursday that it wants the state Legislature to consider a bill it has drafted that would also identify where the remainder of the blend is grown. If the association is successful an example of a package label would read, "90 percent Panamanian coffee, 10 percent Kona coffee." The state senator from Kona said Thursday he plans to introduce the bill at the end of the month. "I respect the local community and Kona coffee is a big issue for us," state Sen. Josh Green, D-Milolii-Waimea, said. For the farmers, it's about truth-in-labeling a...