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Tell Starbucks to Honor Their Commitments to Coffee Farmers

Target: Jim Donald, Starbucks CEO
Sponsored by: Oxfam America

Each year, coffee companies make billions of dollars. Starbucks alone earned almost $5.8 billion in net revenues during the first three quarters of 2006.

Yet, for every cup of coffee Starbucks sells, poor farmers in coffee-growing countries like Ethiopia earn only about $.03. Even worse, while Ethiopian farmers grow some of the finest name-brand coffees in the world think Harar, Yirgacheffe, and Sidamo they don't see the premium profits those names command among consumers.

With as many as 15 million Ethiopians dependent on coffee, Ethiopia wants to get its farmers more of what they deserve. The country's government has asked Starbucks to sign a licensing agreement that will allow Ethiopia to control the names of its coffee. That way, Ethiopia can help determine an export price that makes sure farmers see a larger share of the profits enabling them to feed their children, send them to school and get them better healthcare.

Ask Starbucks to sign the agreement giving Ethiopian farmers their fair share of coffee profits.

deadline: 10-25-2007
goal: 10,000

22,098
signatures!

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This petition is now closed. Success! Starbucks and Ethiopia have finalized an agreement that ends their trademark dispute and brings both sides together in partnership to help Ethiopian farmers. This agreement has the potential to give these farmers a fair share of the profits for their world-renowned coffees. Congratulations! Keep up the good work!

Dear Jim Donald:

As a Starbucks customer, I'm concerned about your opposition to Ethiopia's right to own its coffee names. I am asking Starbucks to honor its commitment to farmers by signing an agreement with Ethiopia that recognizes the country's rights to the names of its coffees. If Starbucks and other companies sign such agreements, estimates suggest that Ethiopian's could see up to $88 million of extra income a year.

[Your comment]

Ethiopia ranks among the poorest countries in the world; more than 75 percent of its population lives on less than $1 per day. About 15 million people in Ethiopia depend on coffee to make a living, the majority of them growing their crop on small plots of about two and a half acres.

Meanwhile, coffee lovers pay up to $26 per pound for fine Ethiopian coffees because they're willing to pay for high quality and great taste. Ethiopian farmers, however, often earn just 5-10 percent of the retail value.

With this disparity in mind, the Ethiopian government launched a project to get legal ownership of its fine coffee names-Sidamo, Yirgacheffe, and Harar. By owning the names, Ethiopia will be able to occupy a stronger negotiating position with foreign buyers, capture a larger share of the market value associated with those names, and protect the reputations of its brand names. In a country with a per capita income of around $100 per year, that amount of money could have a profound impact on the lives of millions of Ethiopians.

As you know, Ethiopia approached Starbucks more than a year ago asking the company to lead by example and to discuss an agreement that would acknowledge Ethiopia's ownership of these names. So far, Starbucks has refused to sign the agreement, or even talk seriously about it with the Ethiopian government.

I want to see Starbucks do the right thing by the poor farmers who grow its coffee. I urge you to sign the licensing agreement and recognize Ethiopia's rightful ownership of its coffee names.

Sincerely,

[Your name]
[Address]

We signed the “Tell Starbucks to Honor Their Commitments to Coffee Farmers” petition!

# 21,900:

6:32 am PST, Nov 21, Gina McKenzie, Minnesota

# 21,899:

6:09 am PST, Nov 21, Susan L. Arday, Maryland

# 21,898:

6:04 am PST, Nov 21, William Pounds, Georgia

# 21,897:

5:10 am PST, Nov 21, Marie St. James, Oregon

# 21,896:

5:09 am PST, Nov 21, Greta Short, Texas
Remember the 7 deadly sins!!!

# 21,895:

5:06 am PST, Nov 21, Lindsay Keiter, Pennsylvania

# 21,894:

4:59 am PST, Nov 21, Name not displayed, Florida

# 21,893:

4:58 am PST, Nov 21, Gwen Ball, Mississippi
Perhaps I've found the reason your coffee leaves me with a bitter taste in my mouth. Need I say more?

# 21,892:

4:55 am PST, Nov 21, Dawn Carpenter, Wisconsin
You Suck! No Wonder I never pulled up to YOUR drivethru's! Ethiopians should REFUSE to sell YOUR company anything at all! Must be a real power trip for you, eh? to see all those people under your mercy.....Jerks!

# 21,891:

4:43 am PST, Nov 21, Lauren Fox, Massachusetts
WALK YOUR TALK!!!

# 21,890:

3:54 am PST, Nov 21, RL HERSKOWITZ, Florida

# 21,889:

3:42 am PST, Nov 21, Andrea Shaw, Maryland
as a student, coffee is my life-blood. it turns out it's also something i make a political statement with. my political statement is for local businesses and fair trade.

# 21,888:

2:58 am PST, Nov 21, April Moen, California

# 21,887:

2:48 am PST, Nov 21, Debbie Netardus, Nevada
How dare you print that fairy tale about "fair trade" and "supporting the communities that grow the coffee" on your packages of coffee and advertising-if people knew the truth they wouldn't be so likely to purchase your outrageously priced coffee. Live up to your purported standards and do the right thing and I'll be happy to pay for your overpriced coffee.

# 21,886:

2:42 am PST, Nov 21, Valentina Fiori, Italy

# 21,885:

1:59 am PST, Nov 21, Celina Martinez, Louisiana
Starbucks, where have your morals gone? You just lost a customer!

# 21,884:

1:52 am PST, Nov 21, Ghulam Ashraf, United Kingdom
You should provide a fair price to people who are living below the poverty line and are responsible for the success of your organisation. You should share out the profits and beenfits more equitably.

# 21,883:

1:18 am PST, Nov 21, Matthew Finn, Switzerland
The mid 80's famine in Ethiopia should be reason enough for any company operating in the region to recognize their role and responsibility to secure a sustainable, ethical business environment. An equitable share of the income from Ethiopian coffee can be used to measurably improve the quality of life of Ethiopians and provide a valuable opportunity to develop much needed infrastructure and services in one of the world's poorest nations. I would strongly encourage Starbucks and other companies in similar positions to fully evaluate their business case assumptions and determine the real impact to their profitability by simulating different cost scenarios for raw ingredients such as coffee. I would imagine that doubling the price paid to Ethiopian farmers would do little to the company's profitability, but a great deal for the farmers and citizens of the country.

# 21,882:

1:07 am PST, Nov 21, Samantha Kitzmiller, Oregon
~STARBUCKS! u r greedy buggers thats all I have to say..share your wealth!

# 21,881:

12:15 am PST, Nov 21, Name not displayed, Michigan
It is the fair and humane thing to do. It is the right thing to do. Don't exploit these poor people. Shame on Starbucks for not caring. I won't buy their products until I know they change their ways.

# 21,880:

11:58 pm PST, Nov 20, David Just, Germany
Give them ALL your money our the world will EAT YOU

# 21,879:

11:53 pm PST, Nov 20, Fetahanegest Redda, Sweden
Ethiopian coffe is the orginal coffe in the world

# 21,878:

11:42 pm PST, Nov 20, Pedro Diaz de Leon, California
Please allow Ethiopian farmers a chance to survive, grow, and expand their profits.

# 21,877:

11:37 pm PST, Nov 20, Heather Cavanagh, California

# 21,876:

11:18 pm PST, Nov 20, Colleen Keith, California
Those hardworking people deserve better than this. What would Starbucks do without those premium coffee growers.

# 21,875:

11:18 pm PST, Nov 20, Name not displayed, Texas
Without these farmers Starbucks would be nothing. Do the right thing Starbucks and give these farmers their fair share.

# 21,874:

10:38 pm PST, Nov 20, Hope Stapf, California

# 21,873:

10:20 pm PST, Nov 20, Name not displayed, Massachusetts
give our farmers the right to eat !

# 21,872:

10:20 pm PST, Nov 20, Shelby Carland, North Carolina
It's sad to see such a large and well known company taking advantage of the under dogs! Be a true leader in your industry and stand up and be the first major coffee corporation to offer nothing but Fair Trade Coffee!!!

# 21,871:

10:08 pm PST, Nov 20, Dawn Neff, Michigan

# 21,870:

10:01 pm PST, Nov 20, Joelene Moore, Texas
Starbucks you have been fortunate. Now it is your turn to send out the right thing. Remember karma??

# 21,869:

10:01 pm PST, Nov 20, Lesby Flores, California
Give Ethiopia their rightful ownership of their native richness.

# 21,868:

9:59 pm PST, Nov 20, Name not displayed, Oklahoma

# 21,867:

9:51 pm PST, Nov 20, Floyd Tolar, Massachusetts

# 21,866:

9:49 pm PST, Nov 20, Fayaz Chagani, Canada
It's the right thing to do!

# 21,865:

9:36 pm PST, Nov 20, Tracy Copper, Illinois

# 21,864:

9:32 pm PST, Nov 20, Michelle Carter, Michigan

# 21,863:

9:31 pm PST, Nov 20, Name not displayed, Oklahoma
Show some honor for the work that has been done for generations to provide such a commodity that can be marketed by your enterprise.

# 21,862:

9:29 pm PST, Nov 20, Sean Gee, Washington D.C.

# 21,861:

9:24 pm PST, Nov 20, Tim Kananen, Canada

# 21,860:

9:19 pm PST, Nov 20, Christine Widaman, California
Starbucks should re-evaluate its policies and help the common man. Also not try to set up a shop on every corner and give others a chance.

# 21,859:

9:14 pm PST, Nov 20, Name not displayed, Ethiopia
this is time to consider the source and the developer of the test of coffee, Ethiopian farmers, let them to share thier part

# 21,858:

9:13 pm PST, Nov 20, Sandra Mcalister, South Carolina

# 21,857:

9:07 pm PST, Nov 20, Ruth Vitale, California

# 21,856:

9:02 pm PST, Nov 20, Ingrid David, California

# 21,855:

9:02 pm PST, Nov 20, Zon Moy, Wisconsin

# 21,854:

9:00 pm PST, Nov 20, Mima Arroyo, California

# 21,853:

8:49 pm PST, Nov 20, Chandra Zeissler, Utah

# 21,852:

8:45 pm PST, Nov 20, Elizabeth Bender, Oregon

# 21,851:

8:41 pm PST, Nov 20, Elaine Steele, New York
The honorable thing to do is to give the coffee farmers the promised commitments. Come on, you can do it.

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