Starbucks and Ethiopia get together over coffee
The long-running dispute between Starbucks and the Ethiopian government was close to being resolved last night after the two sides said they had reached an outline agreement over the country’s ownership of its premium varieties of coffee.
A deal could represent a significant victory for the impoverished east African country. It had been thwarted by Starbucks in its attempt to get a higher price for its coffees, which would earn its farmers tens of millions of dollars extra each year.
Officials on both sides said yesterday that after two days of talks they had agreed in principle to sign a licensing, distribution and marketing agreement that recognised the importance and integrity of Ethiopia’s speciality coffees – Harar, Sidamo and Yirgacheffe.
Oxfam welcomed the news but looked forward to a final agreement. It launched a campaign against Starbucks last October because of the Seattle-based coffee chain’s effective blocking of Ethiopia’s attempts to trademark its coffee beans in the United States.
Full Story http://environment.guardian.co.uk/ethicalliving/story/0,,2072272,00.html
Ashley Seager
Friday May 4, 2007
The Guardian
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