Posted on May 9th, 2007 by Michael
Our friends from Nicaragua finished their first SCAA experience Monday, and Tuesday began a five-day speaking tour in the L.A. metro area. Yesterday afternoon after the exhibition closed, they reflected on the experience. “I never imagined I would come to something like this,” said CECOSEMAC’s marketing coordinator Immer Montoya. President Adrian Arauz, pictured here on the first day of the exhibit, called it “an incredible experience.” Tired from long days attending workshops, meeting with potential buyers, walking the exhibit floor and exchanging experiences with farmers from other cooperatives, Immer and Adrian felt simultaneously humbled and encouraged. “We saw how small we are in this industry,” said Immer. It’s true. CECOSEMAC consists of less than 250 farmers from a few communities
Posted on May 9th, 2007 by Michael
Dean Cycon, founder of CRS Coffee Program partner Dean’s Beans, has been making headlines for years – for his ads in The Village Voice challenging major coffee corporations to increase their commitment to Fair Trade, for his decision to withhold Fair Trade licensing fees from TransFair USA and return them to the farmers who grow Dean’s Beans coffee, and most recently for his active engagement around Ethiopia’s coffee trademark campaign. Unfortunately, one of his most noble efforts has gone relatively unnoticed – his work on behalf of the Coffeelands Landmine Victims’ Trust. Coffee farmers in dozens of countries – including six of the world’s ten leading coffee producers – are affected by landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) that kill hundreds
Posted on May 3rd, 2007 by Michael
Beginning next week, you can ask them questions — about coffee, organic farming, Fair Trade, life in Nicaragua, or anything else — during their Southern California speaking tour
Posted on April 27th, 2007 by Michael
a USDA ruling threatens to dramatically reduce the availability of certified organic coffee by squeezing hundreds of thousands of small-scale coffee farmers out of the U.S. organic market
