Starbucks Hampstead Heath manager Jessica Stoller picks coffee beans in Tanzania
In the underlying article Starbucks, one of the most well known fairtrade companies, had it’s staff involved in a highly bizarre experiment. Starbucks has sent some of it’s staff to work on the coffee plantations. The question that raises here is, “What does Starbucks really wants to approve by doing this?”
On the one hand they want to show the customers and staff it is worth it to give more money for the products. On the other hand some critics blame Starbucks this is just a PR stunt and fairtrade is just a simple instrument to polish up the corporate social responsibility statement in the annual report.
I think it’s good when companies use the “fairtrade image” to boost their sales. Actually the more sales means the more profits, as a result, there is also more money to give the farmers a higher price for their products. The critics are definitely wrong when they say that fairtrade is only a PR stunt. Fairtrade might boost sales and profits for the multinationals, nevertheless, it helps the farmers out as well.
Cédric De Prol
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/nov/06/starbucks-employees-africa-coffee-farmers
I think you have a good point there, Cédric. Probably Starbucks uses this as a PR-stunt, but who cares? I believe that the main goal of companies is to make profits and if fair trade can be the helping tool to achieve that, why not? There are no negative consequences by using fair trade to pimp up the image of your company. On the contrary it’s only a good thing for the farmers.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenStefanie De Lille