Is it fair to drink Starbucks?

When it comes to an organic lifestyle, many consumers in the know opt for fair trade items including sugar and tea. But a newbie to the organic scene might be a bit confused about fair trade. What exactly does it mean? And what’s an easy way to get started?

Fair trade is a market-based model of international trade. It encourages companies to pay a fair price to the farmers who grow and produce a variety of goods from cotton to wine. The fair trade movement also promotes fair environmental and social conditions in production areas so farmers and farm workers can have a comfortable way of life in their location.

One of the products at the center of the fair trade movement is coffee—because Americans “spend $9.2 billion dollars in the retail sector and $8.7 billion in the food service sector every year,” according to a 1999 survey by the National Coffee Association. You've probably helped the industry by grabbing a cup in the morning... or maybe several cups the night before a big project is due.

And it probably also helps that “coffee is the oldest and second-largest, globally-traded commodity” but Hawaii is the only state that grows it, according to the National Coffee Association. No matter how you brew it, coffee is a big business.

Major coffee sellers across the country are taking notice of the organic connoisseurs push toward fair trade.

Now Starbucks is brewing Fair Trade Certified coffee in stores nation and worldwide in Austria, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Kingdom, according to it’s Web site. But it’s not even close to having half it’s products being fair trade.

McDonalds is also getting into the fair trade trend. In 2005, the company started serving fair trade coffee at stores in New England and New York. It has since expanded fair trade distribution to stores across America and the globe. Yet, the sale of fair trade barely makes a dent in comparison to how much coffee McDonalds sells every morning.

The best advice for anyone who is trying to convert all their cups of Joe into a fair trade crusade is to buy coffee at smaller shops instead of major chains. Try Bentley’s House of Coffee and Tea, near the University of Arizona campus at 1730 E. Speedway Blvd. (Bentley's offers free WiFi too so you can read up on organic issues while sipping some fair trade coffee.)

Or just make a cup at home from coffee bought at one of the many Trader Joe's or Wild Oats locations scattered around town. Or head on over to the AJ's Purveyor of Fine Foods or Aqua Vita chain stores. Want to shop someplace a little more local? Go to the Rincon Market, 2513 E. Sixth St.

Some of the fair trade coffee sold in those locations is from local suppliers Adventure Coffee Roasters and Arbuckle Coffee Roasters.

One more thing, remember the best way to enjoy some fair trade coffee is by keeping it organic. Accompany your java with organic cream or milk. And remember, use some fair trade sugar in that brew too.

Until next time, happy eating.