The Definitive Guide to Modern Supply Chain Management (Collection)

Case 16. Ethical Product Sourcing in the Starbucks Coffee Supply Chain

Dustin Smith^†

^† Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA; [e-mail]

Introduction

Fair Trade is a movement that “seeks to empower family farmers and workers around the world while enriching the lives of those struggling in poverty.”¹ Fair Trade is based on the principal of paying above the market rate for goods that are environmentally friendly and made by workers in safe conditions who are paid a livable wage. Coffee is a significant focus of the Fair Trade movement, because coffee trails only oil in global trade volume.² Despite high global demand, market price fluctuations can create hardships for many of coffee’s small producers. In the United ...