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作者：艾許莉‧帕金森 (西北樹蔭咖啡運動組織)
2002年1月9日 星期三
美國，華盛頓州，西雅圖----今天，我正計畫要跟當地的一個咖啡進口商做個拜訪，參觀他們的工作情形，也了解一下他們對咖啡這行業的看法。這項拜訪是早就要做的，可是，不知怎麼地，我就是把它耽擱了。雖然咖啡進口商代表的只是咖啡豆從農作物變成一杯杯熱騰騰的咖啡過程中的一小步，但對於要在精品咖啡的市場（編按）建立樹蔭咖啡多樣性的產品選擇，他們可是關鍵。他們選擇進口什麼給烘培商和零售商，咖啡屋和商店所賣的就會是什麼。有些進口商推銷樹蔭有機咖啡豆，有些則不。
六年前，當「西北樹蔭咖啡運動」在一群志工和當地幾家咖啡公司的支持下開始的時候，我們所用來面對咖啡這議題的方法，幾乎跟其他運動的人員用來面對所有的問題的方法一樣。我們辦活動、募款、等待事情發生變化。而變化的確是發生了。現在，有45家烘培商和零售商參與了這個活動。每一家都承諾，在一整年中，他們會供應至少一種以上的樹蔭咖啡，並且會讓他們的顧客了解到樹蔭咖啡的好處。而他們所得到的回報是：他們可以在他們的商品上打上我們的標誌。
為了完成過去六年來我們所做的一切，我們對咖啡這行業已有了很多的認識。舉例來說：有些基本的東西，如樹蔭咖啡認證（用來證明咖啡的確是在樹蔭下長成的證書），是很昂貴的，而且不容易取得。數量眾多的農夫、不同的栽培方法和廣大的地理區域，都包括在我們資訊收集的範圍內。「史密森候鳥中心」和「雨林聯盟」都有認證樹蔭咖啡，但並沒有一個統一的標準，沒有某個單一標籤能讓消費者知道，他們買的咖啡是樹蔭咖啡。
去年五月，當「消費者選擇協會」公佈了「咖啡生產保育原則」時，我們向前邁進了一大步。「咖啡生產保育原則」是一套可用來建立認證系統的準則；這套原則所提倡的栽培咖啡的方式，能夠保護野生生物和棲息地、節省水和能源，並且創造一定數量的工作機會。這套原則已是一項有利的工具了。星巴克公司（Starbucks）依據這套原則，已改變了其原料取得的作業方式，而以對環境及社會負責的咖啡，作為原料選取過程中的優先選擇。
然而，現在的消費者在要購買對社會負責的咖啡時，仍然得費力地面對三個不同的系統。除了樹蔭咖啡，產銷互惠貿易咖啡和有機咖啡在超級市場的貨架上也贏得了注意。有證書的產銷互惠貿易進口商，如「公平交流公司」，直接和咖啡合作社交易，也確保農夫們能穩定地以每磅1.26美元的價格賣出咖啡。相較於美國進口商鼓勵其國內咖啡合作社，採用有機和樹蔭咖啡的作業方式，則產銷互惠貿易咖啡卻不一定是有機或是樹蔭咖啡；最多只有70％的產銷互惠貿易咖啡是有機生產的。
如果對社會及環境負責的咖啡要跨出精品咖啡的利基範疇，並朝罐裝咖啡發展，我們將需要開發一個能表明三方認證的固定標籤。佛吉斯（Folgers）、雀巢（Nestle）和牛皮紙(卡夫)，這三家公司掌握了咖啡的主流市場。目前，對於決定咖啡豆來源一事，他們幾乎什麼都沒做。這三大公司透過中盤商人來作業，結合了來自不同國家的咖啡，以創造她們的烘培招牌。在這樣的作業方式下，當談到咖啡生產國的工人健康及環境健康時，他們選擇避而不見。（編按：有關大型咖啡公司對市場影響，而傾向採用產銷互惠或環保咖啡的公司如何競爭生存，可參見「咖啡界的新思潮」一文。）
我想這情況是會改變的。但是，如1980年代，「不危害海豚的鮪魚運動」一樣，咖啡將會需要一個能被立即辨識的標誌，以便讓大部分不能分辨卡布奇諾和拿鐵的美國人能認得。現在，我們正在申請基金，用以和其他組織如來自咖啡生產地國家的「國際保育」組織，進行合作。可是，要達到能讓受認證的樹蔭咖啡有穩定供應量的共同合作，得還要幾年的工夫。
有時候，我會對這計畫的抱負開始不受控制、天馬行空地編造任何點子。對於每一件要做的事，我都感到很興奮。但是，我還是必須把精力集中在我們已經完成的事情上，比如說：跟消費者、進口商和零售商接觸的工作。而這提醒了我要和咖啡商會面的事，我得去安排碰面時間了。
【文章連載】
■樹蔭咖啡日記 (一) (二) (三)
(四) (五)
全文與圖片詳見：http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/
parkinson010902.asp
版權歸屬 Earth Day Network，環境資訊協會(莊建信 譯，徐怡德 審校)
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Wednesday, 09 Jan 2002
SEATTLE, Wash.----Today I'm trying to schedule a meeting
with a local coffee importer to tour their operation and learn more about
their perspective on the coffee business. It's a visit that's probably
long overdue, but somehow I've managed to put it off. Importers represent
just one step in the process of converting coffee from crop to steaming
cup, but they're crucial to establishing shade-grown varieties in the
specialty market. What they choose to market to roasters and retailers is
what ends up in the cafes and stores. Some promote shade-grown organic
beans; others don't.
When the Northwest Shade Coffee Campaign began six years
ago with a group of volunteers and the support of several local coffee
companies, we approached the coffee issue much the same way activists
tackle any problem: We held events and raised money and waited for change
to come. And it did. Today, 45 roasters and retailers are part of the
campaign. Each has pledged to offer at least one line of shade-grown
coffee year-round and educate their customers about the benefits of
shade-grown coffee. In exchange, they get to use our logo on their
products.
To achieve what we have in the last six years, we've had
to learn a lot about the business of coffee. For instance, something as
basic as shade certification (independent confirmation that coffee is
actually grown under shade conditions) is expensive and difficult to
obtain. The sheer number of farmers, the different farming methods, and
the vast geographic area all inhibit our information-gathering. Both the
Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and the Rainforest Alliance certify
shade-grown coffee, but there is no universal standard, no single label
that lets consumers know they are buying coffee that is shade-grown.
We took a big step forward last May, when the Consumer's
Choice Council issued "Conservation Principles for Coffee
Production," a set of guidelines that can be used to create
certification systems. The principles advocate coffee farming that
protects wildlife and habitat, conserves water and energy, and creates
sustainable jobs. These principles have been a powerful tool; Starbucks
has used them to change their sourcing practices, prioritizing
environmentally and socially responsible coffee in their acquisition
process.
For now, though, consumers wade through three different
systems when buying socially responsible coffee. In addition to
shade-grown coffee, fair trade and organic coffee command attention on the
supermarket shelves. Certified fair-trade importers like Equal Exchange
work directly with coffee cooperatives, ensuring that farmers receive a
stable price of $1.26 per pound. While U.S. importers encourage their
cooperatives to adopt organic and shade practices, fair trade coffee is
not necessarily organic or shade-grown. The best estimates are that 70
percent of fair trade coffee is organically produced.
If socially and environmentally responsible coffee is ever
to move beyond the niche market of specialty coffee and "into the
can," we'll need to develop one consistent label that indicates
triple-certification. Three companies -- Folgers, Nestle, and Kraft --
control much of the mainstream coffee market. To date, they have done
almost nothing to determine the source of their beans. Working through
brokers and combining coffee from different countries to create their
signature roasts, the big three conveniently opt to look the other way
when it comes to the health of the workers and of the environment in
coffee-producing countries.
I think that can change. But like the "dolphin-safe
tuna" campaign of the 1980s, coffee will need an instantly
identifiable logo to communicate to the majority of Americans who can't
tell the difference between a cappuccino and a latte. Right now we're
applying for funding to work with other organizations, like Conservation
International, on the ground in coffee country, but a coordinated effort
to ensure a steady supply of certified shade-grown coffee is still a
couple years off.
Sometimes my ambitions for this project start spinning out
of control. I'm so excited for everything to work, but I need to
concentrate on building on what we've already accomplished -- like working
on all fronts with consumers, importers, and retailers. Which reminds me,
I've got a meeting to schedule.
http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/
parkinson010902.asp
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