MILAN – Starting on Aug. 1, Fairtrade International, including its American chapter Fairtrade America, will implement an increased Minimum Price for coffee with the aim to better meet farmers’ current realities. The new minimum increases prices by 19% for Robusta coffee and 29% for Arabica coffee.
The new price came after an extensive cost of production study along with a consultation that included outreach to more than 600 producer organizations and 745 commercial partners with one clear resounding message – farmers need to be paid more or they can’t continue to grow coffee.
Coffee farmers are facing a stark reality. In a $200 billion coffee industry, they are unjustly bearing many of the rising costs of coffee production, along with the challenges presented by climate change, while receiving little additional income despite rising prices for consumers.
In fact, nearly half of smallholder coffee farmers are living in poverty, with 25% living in extreme poverty (less than $2.15/day). Without a fairer price, the future of coffee is at risk, said Fairtrade.
Benjamin Kouame, Chair of Fairtrade Africa shared of the new price model, “Truly resilient livelihoods of coffee farmers call for reviewing Fairtrade Minimum Prices to ensure that producers are selling at prices that cover their cost of production while working with stakeholders to meet other farming needs like climate change and adherence to ever-changing regulatory frameworks.
Paying farmers a fair price for their crops is the bare minimum to keep them farming.”
