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THE LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF FAIR TRADE COFFEE PROJECT

The LWR Fair Trade Coffee Project ensures that more of the money you spend on coffee reaches the farmers who actually grow it. Fair trade coffee is a simple solution that means the difference—quite literally—between surviving and not surviving for small-scale coffee farmers.

Coffee: a bitter cup?

Coffee is big business—it’s one of the most heavily traded commodities in the world. But for the majority of small-scale coffee farmers, the benefits are few.

Conventionally traded coffee involves a lengthy, and expensive, cast of middlemen between the coffee farmer and the consumer, each taking their share—or more—of the coffee price. What’s left for the farmers may not even cover their production costs or basic living expenses.

Coffee prices are notoriously unstable and in recent years have dropped to historic lows, forcing farmers from Colombia to Tanzania to give up their farms. The unpredictable fluctuations in market price deny many farmers the ability to pay for daily necessities such as medicines, clothing or school fees. Overwhelmed with debt and unable to earn a consistent income, farmers are moving to the cities or migrating to other countries in search of work.

A simple solution: fair trade. Next>

Questions? Email fairtrade@lwr.org to learn more.

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