Starbucks Social Responsibilities: Ethics

Starbucks goal is to buy and sell 100% responsibly grown and traded coffee. In 2008 the company bought 385 pounds of coffee, from which 75% was responsibly grown and ethically traded.
Starbucks always wanted to sell the highest quality coffee. That's why one of the company's goals is to make sure the coffee was grown under the highest standards of quality.

• For more than 10 years Starbucks and Conservation International(CI) have been working together in order to help farmers grow coffee;


• In 2004 the company created Farmers Support Center in Costa Rica. The main purpose of the Center is to show farmers better methods of growing coffee. Therefore, a team of agronomists is working together with the farmers;


• In 2008 Starbucks opened another Farmer Support Center in Rwanda;


• The company is supporting small scale and Fair Trade farmers;


• Starbucks pays high prices; average price the company paid for coffee in fiscal 2008 was $1.49 per pound;


• Starbucks buys organic coffee;


• The company is investing in a better future for farmers through loan program.
  

The company is focused on using responsible growing practices and reducing the environmental footprint by working to use less and do more with what they use.