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Fair Trade Coffee
The foundation of a Sustainable farming
program is the ability for the farmers to make a living wage.
The absence of such a foundation causes unsustainable practices
to be the norm.
Birds and Beans sells a variety Fair Trade
Certified Coffees. In Canada, the Fair Trade certification
is administered by Transfair
Canada. The Fair Trade Logo is your guarantee that the
clearly defined criteria of the Fairtrade
Labeling Organization International have been satisfied:
- A Fair Price
Producer cooperatives are guaranteed a fair price —
a floor price of US$1.26 or 5 cents US above the prevailing
market price if higher; US$1.41 for certified organic coffee
or 15 cents US above the market price if higher.
- Democratic Organization
Producers must belong to cooperatives or associations that
are transparent and democratically controlled by their members.
- Direct Trade and Long Term Relationships
Importers must purchase coffee directly from Fair Trade
certified producers and agree to establish long-term and
stable relationships.
- Access to Credit
When requested by producers, importers must provide pre-harvest
financing or credit.
- Environmental Protection
Producers must implement integrated crop management and
environmental protection plans. Through price incentives,
producers are encouraged to work towards organic production.
Birds and Beans endeavours to purchase
all its coffees under the above conditions. In addition, we
strongly support the the Fair Trade certification program
by:
- Licencing with Transfair Canada and hence subjecting our
practices to their auditors,
- Paying a higher price for raw coffee,
- Clearly identifying which coffees are certified Fair Trade,
- Paying a royalty to Transfair Canada on sales of certified
Fair Trade coffee,
- Selecting Fair Trade coffees from our importers where
possible, and
- Endeavouring to purchase coffees traded under these conditions
even where certification is not yet in place.
At Birds and Beans, we believe slightly
higher prices are worth sustainability!
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