Boutique Coffee Coffee Certification Organization of Coffee planting Industry

Fair Trade Coffee Fair Trade Coffee

"Fair Trade" is one of the many coffee certifications and the most widely used international third-party certification.

Certified coffee beans usually sell at a higher price. In Europe and the United States, the main circulation channels will set up special shelves of Fairtrade products for consumers to choose from.

As the name implies, "Fair Trade" emphasizes a fair trade environment and is a kind of certification for "products". There are many products that can be certified, coffee is only one of them, and other more common fair certification products, cocoa.

Original intention of certification

Advocates of fair trade believe that in a fully market-oriented trade system, the interests of producers, especially farmers, are easily infringed, and the most obvious is the sharp rise and fall of international coffee prices, which pass fair trade certification to ensure that farmers' products have a reasonable price.

Main content

To ensure that coffee farmers can be protected from price shocks in the international market is the most attractive aspect of Fairtrade. Certification emphasizes that producers should comply with the principle of sustainable development, comply with local laws and regulations, do not use child labour and guarantee the right to re-education of underage workers, and that labor income should be higher than the statutory minimum wage, certification also rarely emphasizes the status of female workers and strives for equal pay for equal work with men.

In addition, fair trade certification also pays attention to the monitoring of the entire industry chain to ensure that producers, wholesalers and retailers are in a fair and transparent environment. Traders involved in Fairtrade also need to be supervised.

There is a cost to apply for Fairtrade certification, and the amount of the fee mainly depends on the complexity of the actual certification inspection, such as the type of products certified and the number of products certified. In principle, it is subject to re-examination every year, and after passing certification for many years in a row, the review cycle can be adjusted to once every three years.

Who will certify it?

There are many international organizations participating in fair trade certification, among which the International Fair Trade labeling Organization is the most widely recognized, referred to as FLO, full name Fairtrade Labeling Organization International. When fair and trade write "fairtrade", they usually refer specifically to FLO. Each country or region generally has a local fair trade organization. In addition, Fairtrade certification in the United States and Canada uses the Fare Trade USA logo.

Negative evaluation

There are also doubts about Fairtrade certification, first of all, the limitation of its certification scope. In the coffee industry, coffee cooperatives are eligible to apply for certification, and independent private farms cannot apply for this certification. Secondly, free market advocates think that manual intervention in the operation of market prices is inappropriate, which stems from the debate in economics, the pros and cons of the free market, and opponents believe that fair trade protects the interests of some farmers at the expense of others. In addition, the cost of Fairtrade certification and the operating costs of related organizations are also controversial aspects.

Bird-friendly Coffee "protect Bird" Coffee

The term "protecting birds" here refers to the way coffee is grown. The coffee is grown without cutting down virgin forests, rainforests and pesticides that can kill birds, so that birds can survive. This model requires farmers to farm in the traditional way, usually funded partly by buyers of coffee beans. Nowadays, the term often appears in the coffee producing areas of Central and South America, because these areas happen to be the seasonal migration routes of birds.

At present, the widely used mode of coffee cultivation is to reclaim a large amount of land, which can easily lead to less shade and a sharp loss of bird habitat. In Brazil alone, there are more than 20,000 square kilometers of coffee plantations, most of which are formed by the reclamation of pristine rainforests. In Indonesia, coffee cultivation has caused extensive loss of forests, even in nature reserves. According to a survey by the World Wildlife Conservation Society, the coffee growing industry is responsible for the extinction of many rare birds, so protected bird coffee is highly respected. There are now relevant certifications in developed countries, and many food stores have begun to sell only coffee that protects birds.

Direct Trade Direct Trade Coffee

Farmers who sell coffee directly sell raw coffee beans to foreign bakers and establish a purchasing and sales relationship with each other. both sides know the whole process of the transaction. Farmers provide high-quality coffee and are guaranteed to get higher market prices than wholesalers. Even more favorable purchase prices than fair trade norms, so farmers can make a living by growing coffee and concentrate on growing and dealing with good quality coffee. Continue to improve their living environment to train and educate the next generation.

The middlemen in the coffee industry are not all bad, because they often play the role of cup testing and quality control, and also help coffee beans reach the market through a variety of complex links, but the disadvantage is that they do not represent the interests of farmers. In the case of no connections, no understanding of the market and limited funds, middlemen take cash, so that farmers have almost no bargaining conditions, no matter how much the collector offers, they have to accept it all. However, bean bakers with direct trade can follow the value of these beans in the market, increase the purchase price proportionally, farmers share profits with bean bakers, and farmers sell a batch of high-quality beans through direct trading. Income can even be as much as 25% more than fair trade.

According to the concept of direct trade coffee, if you do it right, you can create a win-win situation: first, the bean baker must establish a direct purchasing pipeline, and in order to build this pipeline, he must have the ability to identify high-quality coffee and visit the producing areas in person. provide detailed quality advice from coffee farmers as practical advice to improve handling standards or maintain existing high quality (if no one can be found Welcome to me!), after the two sides confirm the transaction, the information of coffee farmers will be introduced to consumers in detail, so that coffee farmers can be publicly exposed in front of consumers, so that consumers can know coffee farmers, through this transparent information and transaction process, so that good quality coffee has a reasonable price, farmers can rely on good quality coffee to have the ability to improve their living environment and growing conditions. This is a win-win for farmers, consumers and bakers. Because of the price paid by consumers, for coffee of the same quality, it must be cheaper to buy from a "direct relationship" baker than from an international well-known chain store, and the quality of raw beans is better, so that consumers can not only buy cheaply, but also buy better coffee.

Rainforest Alliance Rainforest Alliance Certification

There is an obvious frog on the rainforest certification logo, rainforest alliance certified coffee, or "frog bean" for short.

"Rainforest Alliance" RA (Rainforest Alliance) certification refers to a farm that meets the standards set by the Rainforest Alliance, which protects the farm and its surrounding ecosystem, imposes some restrictions on the use of pesticides, and evaluates benchmarks such as waste management. Only coffee that has been evaluated and certified can be called "Rainforest Alliance certified coffee". Among them, the certification benchmark for coffee stipulates that traditional farming methods cultivated in the shade of primary forests are adopted, which are beneficial to the protection of the ecosystem. Some of the proceeds from the alliance are also used for the protection of wildlife in tropical rainforest animal reserves and the improvement of workers' living standards.

The farm that meets the benchmark established by the Tropical Rainforest Alliance will evaluate the benchmarks such as ecosystem protection, pesticide use restrictions and waste management in and around the coffee plantation. Only the coffee that has passed the benchmark and is certified, can be called "Tropical Rainforest Alliance certified coffee". In addition, part of the proceeds are also used for wildlife protection in tropical rainforest animal reserves. In terms of labor life and well-being, it is a pair of coffee with a good natural environment.

The certified benchmark is composed of three sectors of the regional society of nature conservation farming methods, from the protection of forests to the waste disposal of the labor environment, chemicals and fertilizers of water pollution practitioners. The certification benchmark for coffee stipulates that it is adopted, which is the most beneficial to the protection of the ecosystem, and is the traditional farming method of shade cultivation in the primary forest.

Organic coffee Organic Coffee beans Certification

Organic Coffee Organic Coffee and authorized Organic Coffee Certified Organic Coffee is licensed by a third party and is grown without chemical raw materials without pesticides, pesticides, herbicides and artificial food additives during the growth of coffee trees. The detection, planting, cultivation, harvesting and production of soil water quality must meet the organic conditions and the process must be strictly controlled. It is a high-quality coffee produced in harmony with nature, which is of great benefit to health and environmental protection.

First, the purpose of producing organic coffee is twofold:

First, protect the environment and realize the sustainable use and development of land.

Second: to produce healthier and greener products to avoid the impact of chemical pesticide residues on human health.

Therefore, the general organic certification products require the soil not to apply pesticides and chemical fertilizers for three consecutive years, but to apply organic fertilizers and to adopt sustainable farming methods. Therefore, organic vegetables and fruits sold in the general market are more expensive because they are healthier and safer.

The coffee we drink is made of seeds from the coffee fruit, which are baked at a high temperature and then extracted with hot water at about 90 degrees Celsius. Therefore, in terms of health issues such as pesticide residues, the risk of coffee is far lower than that of ordinary crops. Of course, in terms of environmental sustainability, the way organic coffee is grown is very beneficial.

Shade coffee Yinsheng Coffee beans Certification

Although the yield of the method of planting in the shade is not high, its quality can reach the level of gourmet coffee. This is because shading trees can slow down the maturity of coffee trees, give coffee full growth, and make it contain more natural ingredients and better taste.

Carbon-neutral carbon neutralization coffee beans (carbon neutralization is also called carbon compensation)

Carbon neutralization (carbon neutral) is to achieve the goal of environmental protection by calculating the total amount of carbon dioxide emissions and then absorbing these emissions by planting trees and other means. It is self-reflection and self-discipline after people reflect on the reality of global warming, and it is a positive action after the awakening of the people of the world. It was initially initiated by environmentalists, and gradually won more and more public support, and has become an actual greening action valued by governments all over the world. Carbon neutralization can usually be achieved by promoting the use of renewable energy and afforestation.

Carbon-neutral coffee is a carbon-neutral coffee certified by the carbon-neutral organization.

To promote coffee (and other products), the most recent "certification" for environmentally conscious consumers is the "carbon neutral" label. Because of its nature, coffee is a product and it has the potential to create a negative impact on the environment. In the worst case, tropical forests are cleared, making the sun's coffee plantations in a way that leads to pesticides and herbicides, erosion, and habitat loss, and water pollution. It is then shipped to developed countries, roasted coffee, and then to consumers, consuming energy and increasing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, the culprit widely used in global climate change.

Carbon neutrality is entirely related to the impact of the environment, not the working conditions of coffee producers. But many companies that do not care enough should make efforts to make their operations carbon-neutral and pay attention to the working conditions of farmers and workers. These issues are through direct trade relations or through the purchase and sale of Fairtrade certified coffee.