California Representative Introduces Resolution for FairTrade Coffee

California Representative Introduces Resolution for FairTrade Coffee

OAKLAND, Calif.--On July 19, Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.)introduced a House resolution that the government should limit purchases ofcoffee to those that are fair trade certified.

Sporting a fair trade certified label guarantees that the farmers supplyingthe coffee have received a fair price at harvest, have sold their crop withoutusing middlemen, and benefited from cooperative programs supporting social andcommercial development. An estimated 85 percent of fair trade coffee iscertified organic.

"It's an atrocity that so many small farmers are being ripped off bycorrupt coffee brokers and forced to live in poverty," Stark stated."In the context of the global economy, consumer choices affect communitiesand the environment throughout the world." According to a 2001 NationalCoffee Association study, Americans are the world's biggest consumers of coffee.