Starbucks Cycle

"Exported coffee is loaded by hand in containers containing 300 bags of the highest grade coffee. Each container is then shipped off by truck to the port where they are loaded onto a ship . After the container arrives on its port at the destination and clears customs it is delivered by truck to a warehouse where it is stored by controlled conditions to maintain proper temperature and moisture content. The coffee is then roasted, and distributed to a wholesale or retail outlet and ultimately to the end consumer" (n.a. The Ethiopian Coffee Process).

"Producing coffee is hard labor that is not fairly compensated to the Ethiopian farmers. Starbucks consumers might pay 20 dollars a pound for Ethiopian coffees, the farmers earn less than ten percent of the retail value" (Black Gold). "Women have the task of sorting through every pile of coffee beans and removing the beans that are damaged or deformed. Starbucks goal (Based on website): 'Ensure 100% of their coffee is ethically sourced by 2015'" (n.a. The Ethiopian Coffee Process).

Look for the fairtrade logo in stores and purchase fairtrade coffee so that coffee farmers will receive fair compensation for their work.

"Anti tax avoidance activists staged protests at more than 50 Starbucks stores [in December 2012] to complain about the coffee chain’s tax arrangements. The demonstrations went ahead in cities including London, Glasgow, Belfast, Liverpool, Sheffield and Portsmouth even though the US giant announced changes to its tax payments. Lisa Stewart, a 30-year-old UK Uncut activist, said: 'Women are bearing the brunt of these cuts, and if they (the Government) made tax-dodgers like Starbucks pay that would bring in £25 billion a year. Today we are standing up for the women’s services we refuse to see destroyed. These cuts are having a massive, devastating impact on women’s lives today'" (“Kenya London News”).

"Campaign update: Starbucks and Ethiopia signed a distribution, marketing and licensing agreement today [December 2006] that ends their trademark dispute and brings them together in partnership to help Ethiopian coffee farmers. International relief and development agency Oxfam welcomes the agreement that has the potential to give farmers a fairer share of the profits for their world-renowned coffee brands, Sidamo, Harar and Yirgacheffe" (Starbucks Day of Action).

If you notice this was in 2006 that Starbucks signed an agreement, but the previous article on growth earlier was from 2007, and said that Ethiopian farmers were still being cheated on their pay.

Works Cited

Market

Northstar Gallery "The History of Mermaids and Sirens Symbols of Transformation." Northstar Gallery. N.p., 2002. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

Schultz, Howard, and Dori Jones Yang . Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time. Hyperion, 1997. 33-108. Print.

Starbucks. Coffee: Ethically Sourced Coffee Goals and Progress. 2013. Web accessed on 21 April from http://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/sourcing/coffee

Starbucks Day of Action. 2006. Video. YouTubeWeb. 23 Apr 2013.

Tewell, Katie, Bethany Odom, and et al. "Starbucks Marketing Plan." . Franklin College, 12 Dec 2006. Web. 24 Apr 2013.

The Logo Mix. “Famous Logo Design History: Starbucks.” TheLogoMix.com. Web. Apr. 23. 2013.

Valdes, Manuel. "Starbucks Changing the Way Costa Rican Farmers Grow Coffee - and Live." Seattle Times. 30 Mar 2008: n. page. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

(n.a.). The Ethiopian Coffee Process; from the Farm to Your Local Café. 2012. Web accessed on 21 April from

Black Gold. Behind the Beans: Starbucks. 2007. Web. 21 Apr. 2013. http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/blackgold/starbucks.html.

Faris, Stephan. "Starbucks vs. Ethiopia." Fortune Magazine. 26 Feb 2007: n. page. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

Gaynor, Tim. "Starbucks Settles with Dwarf Fired from Barista Job." Rueters. N.p., 11 Aug 2011. Web. 23 Apr 2013.

Gryboski, Michael. "NOM Launches Starbucks Boycott Over Same-Sex Marriage Stance." The Christian Post. N.p., 23 Mar 2012. Web. 24 Apr 2013.

Hoovers. “Starbucks Corporation.” Hoovers, Inc. 2006. 4 Dec. 2006 <www.hoovers.com/starbucks>

Kenya London News. "Activists Target Starbucks – London. 8 Dec 2012: n. page. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

M., Steve. "So, Who is the Siren?." Starbucks, 05 Jan 2011. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

Moon, Youngme, and John Quelch. Starbucks: Delivering Customer Service. Harvard College. Boston: Harvard Business School, 2003. 1-20.

Growth

Coffee Bean Growth

"With its strict guidelines, Starbucks pushes producers to concentrate on quality instead of volume and prefers to buy coffee from farms certified under its environmental and social-standards program introduced in 2003" (Valdes).

Ethiopian Grown

Costa Rican Farmers

"To produce a pound of organic sun-dried coffee, farmers in the southern Ethiopian village of Fero spread six pounds of ripe, red coffee cherries onto pallets near their fields. They sun the fruit for 15 days, stirring every few minutes to ensure uniform dryness, then shuck the shells. Last season, that pound of coffee fetched farmers an average price of $1.45. Figuring in the cost of generator fuel, bank interest, labor and transport across Ethiopia's dusty roads, it netted them less than $1. In the U.S., however, that same pound of coffee commands a much higher price: $26 for a bag of Starbucks' roasted Shirkina Sun-Dried Sidamo” (Faris).

"Seasonal coffee workers unload their baskets of coffee cherries into a transport truck at the end of the day. Workers receive plastic tokens worth money for each basket they deliver. At the height of the season in December, 3,000 workers from Nicaragua, Panama and Costa Rica harvest the coffee cherries. Coffee grows well in humid, cloudy conditions and rich volcanic soil. Santa Eduviges [Costa Rican farmer] uses global-positioning systems to pinpoint altitude (an important factor determining the quality of beans), hires agronomists and partners with other companies to research better fertilizers or agrochemicals to battle deadly fungi. In the long run, farmers save money if they maintain their farms under the Starbucks standards" (Valdes).

Protests

In the early stages of development for Starbucks, Schultz identified their target market as "affluent, well-educated, white-collar patrons (skewed female) between the ages of 25 and 44." Over time, market research teams have recognized the new target market as "younger, less well-educated, and in a lower income bracket than their more established customers" (Moon). Nonetheless, the original target market has not disappeared, but has expanded into the demographic of the store location. For example, southern California stores cater to a growing number of Hispanic customers. A 1999 estimate showed that 70% of customers were internet users, and today the estimate has exceeded 90%. Main customers: Young, affluent, tech-savvy people, moms with strollers, and people combining work and a coffee break (Hoovers). Average age for an established customer was 40, new customers was 36. Customers that started visiting Starbucks in 2002 were 45%female, 55% male (Moon).(Tewell, Odom, and et al).

Mistreatment of Workers

Starbucks

“Starbucks Coffee Co. has agreed to pay $75,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought on behalf of a Texas barista who said she was fired because she was a dwarf.The global coffee giant agreed to settle with Elsa Sallard, who was fired in 2009 after three days of training at a Starbucks coffee shop in El Paso, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said." The Commission filed the lawsuit in May. During her training Sallard, who's stature is small because of dwarfism, offered to use a stool or small stepladder to carry out some of the tasks of preparing orders and serving customers. In a statement, Starbucks welcomed the settlement. It said the firm had a long history of working with communities and organizations to provide equal employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. "Reaching an equitable agreement with the EEOC allows Starbucks to reinforce this commitment, as well as focus on training to ensure that all of our partners are treated fairly" (Gaynor).

Logo

"In a search for a way to capture the seafaring history of coffee and Seattle’s strong seaport roots, there was a lot of poring over old marine books going on. Suddenly, there she was: a 16th century Norse woodcut of a twin-tailed mermaid, or Siren. There was something about her – a seductive mystery mixed with a nautical theme that was exactly what the founders were looking for. A logo was designed around her, and our long relationship with the Siren began" (M). "Sirens had such sweet voices that it is said that mariners who heard their songs were lured into grounding their boats on the rocks on which the beautiful nymphs sang" ("Northstar Gallery").

Starbucks vs. the Consumers

Starbucks Day of Action

Starbucks' Support

Resources

“NOM (The National Organization for Marriage) decided to organize a boycott, dubbed the "Dump Starbucks" campaign, because the company's corporate leadership actively supported efforts to legalize same-sex marriage. Jonathan Baker, director of NOM's Corporate Fairness Project, told The Christian Post that Starbucks' support for same-sex marriage goes beyond a mere statement from an executive" (Gryboski) "The support is not just the personal endorsement of a senior executive, but is the official corporate position of the company," said Baker. "Obviously this position does not reflect the views of all customers and employees and the NOM protest and dumpstarbucks.com is designed to enable these customers and employees to have a voice. Starbucks is proud to join other leading Northwest employers in support of Washington State legislation recognizing marriage equality for same-sex couples," said Kalen Holmes, executive vice president for Partner Resources at Starbucks, in a statement” (Gryboski)

Conclusion

Distribution

Call to Action

The Product

Cycle

Process of Ethiopian Coffee

- Ethiopia is the birthplace of Coffee – Discovered in 1st century A.D.- Grown on sub-tropical forest on small farms in shade of trees

9)WOMEN sort through dried coffee beans for damaged or deformed coffee beans

10) Coffee is separated into three different grades

11) Coffee is dried and bagged then sent to a coffee plant warehouse for a couple of weeks

12) Inspected and sealed for transportation

13) Sent to Coffee and Tea Authority where the coffee is inspected and documented for grade and quality (only the highest grade coffee will be exported)

14) Final process: Polishing to remove silver skin from coffee

15) Highest grade coffee is bagged and stored in lots (n.a. The Ethiopian Coffee Process).

1)Coffee grows on a plant that takes 3-4 years to produce fruit

2)Coffee beans are picked by hand

3)Coffee farmers transport beans to processing plant by foot or hoof

4)Coffee beans (cherries) are cleaned and processed

5)Fermentation: coffee beans soak for 24-36 hours

6)Clean beans with fresh water

7)Separate dense beans and lighter beans

8)Beans are carried to drying tables

Distribution

Production