Poor Farmer

On the Timeline of events where I keep track of the chronology of the trademark dispute between Ethiopia and Starbucks/NCA, I recorded that NCA’s letter of protest was filed in 2005. This prompted Robert F. Nelson, National Coffee Association (NCA) President & CEO to write me an email saying that I have the records wrong. The email further said, “NCA's letters of protest were filed in the later half of 2006 and were not entered into the deliberative process at USPTO until after the USPTO rejected the Ethiopian applications to trademark Sidamo and Harrar.” So, I did some research in the USPTO libraries and found out that the disputed letter of protest (LOP) does have a Filling Date of March 17, 2005. It is clear that this date has caused all the confusion. I have corrected the record on the Timeline until other evidences reveal themselves otherwise. However, the President’s claim that, based on the dates indicated, NCA's letters had no bearing on the rejections of Harrar a...

Tue Feb 6, 2007 5:16am ET ADDIS ABABA, Feb 6 (Reuters) Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR.O: Quote , Profile , Research ), a major U.S. coffee buyer, has agreed to a scheme that recognises three of Ethiopia's prized coffee brands, a senior Ethiopian government official said on Tuesday. Ethiopia, which prides itself as the birthplace of coffee, has been in dispute with Starbucks (SBUX.O: Quote , Profile , Research ), saying the U.S. coffee shop chain had tried to block Africa's biggest producer from trade marking its best-known beans: Sidamo and Harar. "This is an innovative project that will help consumers understand the unique characteristics and true value of Ethiopian coffee and help to improve the livelihood of millions in Ethiopia for whom coffee is a vital source of income," Getachew Mengistie, head of the Ethiopian Intellectual Property Office, said. "We believe this type of commercial cooperation can create mutually beneficial relationships and become...

In another development, the National Coffee Association of U.S.A. (NCA) responded to Oxford Professor Douglas Holt’s essay Is Starbucks “Coffee That Cares?” A copy of the letter addressed to Douglas Holt is sent to Coffee Politics from Robert F. Nelson, President & CEO, National Coffee Association. To my knowledge, this is the first time the NCA joined the public discussion over the trademark dispute. This letter does not address the reasons why they opposed Ethiopia's trademark initiatives but we hope the NCA will soon come forth with firsthand information in the interest of the public's awareness. I am also curious to learn how the NCA can represent farmers' interests when opposing their trade strategies. Full text of the NCA letter is posted below. If you are new, start from here . ---------------- February 5, 2007 Douglas Holt Oxford Said Business School Park End Street Oxford, OX1 1HP United Kingdom Email: doug.holt@sbs.ox.ac.uk Dear Professor Holt: I read wi...

Starbucks responded to the recent commentary, Is Starbucks “Coffee That Cares?” by Oxford Marketing Professor Douglas B Holt. The response was sent to Coffee Politics from Sandra Taylor, Senior Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility. I regard Starbucks' willingness to engage in discussion as a positive step. Both sides are entitled to their assertions regarding Ethiopia’s trademark initiative. Nevertheless, the matter central to the debate is left out of Starbucks’ discussion, as they do not address all of the issues raised in Dr. Holt’s commentary. I also found some of the comments made by Starbucks misleading and deceptive, if not outrageous. I have inserted my observations under each segment categorized by Starbucks as “Fiction” and “Fact.” My observations are colored darker to keep the integrity of Starbucks’ messages intact. If you are new, start from here . ------------ Starbucks and Ethiopia: Fact vs. Fiction We would like to respond to an essay by Douglas Holt, “...

The Bigger Picture Read this and other outstanding commentaries from Policy Innovations . The backdrops drawn there enable us understand the issues we discuss here much better. "As the greatest beneficiary of globalization, the United States has a responsibility to give back to the system from which it benefits. In practical terms, this means the United States has an interest in working toward nurturing freedom and fairness not only at home but also in the global economy. It can do so by promoting fair and ethical trade practices, socially responsible business models, expanded stakeholder rights, and a stronger global civil society. The responsibility is great but fair for the biggest consumer of the world's resources." Devin T. Stewart January 29, 2007 Globalization is again under attack. Commentators from many perspectives have argued recently that globalization has reached a turning point and will never recover. Global inequities, failures of international institutio...

Reminiscent of the fate of Victoria’s Secret Reverend Billy, founder of the Church of Stop Shopping, joins the public movement calling on Starbucks to give Ethiopia what is rightfully hers. The highly respected Reverend is known by many for his unparalleled role in the fight for global and environmental justice. He has run many successful corporate campaigns including the recent campaign against Victoria’s Secret to stop the “clear-cutting of virgin forests” from the Canadian Rockies Mountains. The glossy pages of Victoria's Secret catalogues have been targeted as environmentally destructive products. The Reverend helped end the two year campaign by environmentalists to convince the company to utilize recycled papers for its catalogues. Reverend Billy once again stands for justice and is now siding with the Ethiopian farmers to correct the imbalance of power between Starbucks and Ethiopia. He wants to see Starbucks help the poor farmers help themselves out of poverty by making use ...

Ashley Seager Monday January 29, 2007 The Guardian A campaign by Ethiopia to get a fair price for its coffee - some of the world's finest - kicks off in London today as a spokesman for the east African country's impoverished coffee growers meets Tony Blair. The meeting will be accompanied by a screening of the film Black Gold - a movie on the global coffee industry - to MPs at Westminster, who will also be addressed by the Ethiopian ambassador to Britain. The spokesman, Tadesse Meskela, who is the subject of Black Gold, together with the film's English makers, brothers Nick and Marc Francis, are a serious irritant to some of the world's coffee giants - in particular Seattle-based Starbucks, whose annual turnover of $7.8bn (£4bn) is not much lower than Ethiopia's entire gross domestic product. Mr Meskela runs the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union in Ethiopia, representing about 105,000 coffee growers, and struggles to get the best price - although it is nowhe...