U.S. urged to wake up to "coffee with a conscience"

Friday, October 11, 2002
By Ros Davidson, Reuters

BERKELEY, Calif. — Americans are being urged to wake up to "coffee with a conscience" as labor rights activists push java that addresses the bitter realities of the world coffee trade.

The Fair Trade movement — which seeks to pay Third World coffee growers enough to adequately feed and educate their families — is gaining steam, promoted by nonprofit groups and a new national campaign featuring an actor of presidential caliber, Martin Sheen of the White House television drama West Wing.

For supporters of fair trade coffee, the idea is simple. With plunging coffee prices bringing some coffee farmers to the brink of starvation, they are asking U.S. consumers to pay more for cappuccinos to help protect rural agricultural workers from wild swings in commodity markets.

But critics of the movement say it does little to help coffee workers on large plantations that are not eligible for fair trade guidelines.

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