I generally don't drink a lot of coffee or tea because my body can't handle the caffeine, but it is nice once in a while. I have heard some horror stories about the practices involved in tea and coffee production operations, and I have also heard of some really cool initiatives. One that is promoted by some great organizations like Oxfam and Engineers Without Borders is fair trade certification. Fair trade means the producers and everyone along the value chain for the good you are purchasing received fair treatment, including fair compensation for their work. Fair trade certification can be granted for all kinds of products. I have heard of soccer balls, clothing, bananas, coffee, tea, spices, rice, quinoa, grapes, and chocolate all coming in fair trade certified varieties. It often goes hand in hand with environmentally responsible practices (because most people that care care about both). Fair trade certification means an independent third party has investigated the production practices and verified that they are indeed fair trade. In general I attempt to bring about a better world by getting my purchased beverage in a "to stay" cup, and giving my business to places that are local, that sell fair trade and organic beverages, and that educate their customers about why these things matter.
Today I was talking with my wife and mother in law about the teas at a particular coffee shop which is marketing to the ethical consumer crowd. We thought their coffee was fair trade but weren't sure about the tea so I looked up the tea companies website. There was not a ton of info there either so I clicked on the "Contact Us" link and sent the email below. So I guess my attempt at a better world for today is to look for factual information on products marketed for being ethical, and to ask questions when the facts are sparse.
to:
friends2@mightyleaf.com
Hi,
I am curious about the practices of your tea growers. I recently explored the "community" section of your website but I still have some questions and concerns:
Why aren't your tea's fair trade certified? Have you considered pursuing certification?
What is being done to ensure environmental responsibility of your tea growers?
What is being done to ensure fair treatment and compensation of people involved in the production of your teas?
Do you have any third party oversight of your operations to ensure they are meeting your claims/policies?
Do you work with any local development experts to ensure your community involvement is appropriate and positive?
Thanks!
Justin
