Fall Fun Food and Drink Chapter Three - Ethiopia in my cup · Sunday September 20, 2009 by colin newell
It is said that single-origin coffee and direct trade relationships with importers can be the key to breaking cycles of poverty in a coffee-producing country like Ethiopia.
With programs like Cup of Excellence making inroads; getting a fair price for the folks that produce the raw materials and bypassing dozens if not hundreds of middlemen – a life of circuitous misery guaranteed…
…the World has actually become a better place for coffee farmers.
So what is happening with Ethiopia right now? And why, does it seem that the government is taking a step backwards?
Some history.
From Fortune magazine: To produce a pound of organic sun-dried coffee, farmers in the southern Ethiopian village of Fero spread six pounds of ripe, red coffee cherries onto pallets near their fields. They sun the fruit for 15 days, stirring every few minutes to ensure uniform dryness, then shuck the shells.
Last season, that pound of coffee fetched farmers an average price of $1.45. Figuring in the cost of generator fuel, bank interest, labor and transport across Ethiopia’s dusty roads, it netted them less than $1. In the U.S., however, that same pound of coffee commands a much higher price: $26 for a bag of Starbucks’ roasted Shirkina Sun-Dried Sidamo.
The price differential is evidence that Ethiopia has been unable to capitalize on its intellectual property, coffee.
So Ethiopia decided to trademark names like Yirgacheffe, Harrar and Sidamo.
But Starbucks beat them to it.
And remarkable or not, this raises a wild ride of questions about our “right” to a great cuppa and the farmers right to capitalize on their wonderful beans.
In the end, Ethiopia won and created an Ethiopia Coffee Exchange (ECX) – and at many levels getting a real bead on where your great coffee beans are coming from… well exactly… is somewhat muted.
Still, Ethiopia’s 12 million plus subsistence farmers should be able to rise above some of the Western imposed adversity. For Starbucks, their public relations disaster, pitting the coffee company, which had record revenue of $7.8 billion last year, up 22 percent over 2005, against one of the world’s poorest countries, is a tad tacky.
And as a lover of Misty Valley Ethiopian coffee (a bean we might not be seeing for a while…), I am equally guilty (OK not 7.8 Billion dollar guilty…) of contributing on some small level to the misery in Country…
Except that this great coffee was probably purchased during an online auction netting the farmers 10 times as much money as they would have had on the other inferior schemes.
Coffee has always been a roller coaster – and Ethiopia is a great example of how great things can come to an awesome, proud and hardworking people… if we can all just figure this thing out.
Coming up, a review of a “pooled” Ethiopian coffee – a truly great one… From Transcend Coffee in Edmonton, Canada.
Fall Colors Canadian Style 2009 Surprises from the B.C. throne speech · Tuesday August 25, 2009 by colin newell
An empty-pocketed B.C. government said in its speech from the throne Tuesday that it will get its health authorities, boards of education and Crown corporations under the microscope… in an concerted effort to find cost savings.
Gotta pay for the 2010 Olympics somehow…
“Shrinking revenues will by necessitate curbing our discretionary spending,” the government said. “Our fiscal cupboard is bare and currently hangs on a wall of deficit spending.”
F*cking ha, f*cking ha, f*cking ha ha.
Let’s look at how the Liberals have tightened their belts the last few years…
- Gordon Campbell gave himself a hefty 54 percent raise in 2007, and under his watch, CEO’s of crown corporations have seen their compensation skyrocket by as much as 166 per cent. Nice. Appropriate. Responsible.
- Gordon Campbell gave his deputy ministers a hefty pay raise in 2001 and another in 2006, promising not to do it again for four more years.
- Broke his promise two years later, giving his deputy ministers another raise and opening the door for an increase of up to 43 per cent in 2008.
- In February 2008, the public winced when Campbell’s TransLink board voted themselves a 500 percent pay raise. Have to attract good people.
- A few weeks later, the premier’s BC Ferries commandants received an increase of up to 60 percent — on April 1, 2008 – the same day ferry fares were increased for British Columbia residents.
- In 2008, more than 50,000 British Columbia residents worked for minimum wage or less. We need to attract good help after all.
- Since 2001, Campbell has raised the salaries of deputy ministers three times.
Lying f*cking bastards.
Gotta pay for the 2010 Olympics somehow.
The upside was the announcement that cell phone use while driving might be banned in British Columbia. The downside: The ill conceived and poorly received harmonized sales tax concept is probably a done deal.
Lot’s of luck with the recall folks.
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Summer Food Fun and Drink Chapter 17 Bang Zoom to the Moon · Wednesday July 15, 2009 by colin newell
It is almost 40 years ago when man first walked on the Moon.
And I was there – in front of an 7 year old Canadian made Viking B&W TV set from Eatons.
I was like 9 or 10 years old.
And now – 40 years later, where has our Space program gone?
Other than militarizing space… I mean that area just above the ionosphere, not really space at all. We have done nothing really meaningful… in Space… for 40 years.
I say we for a reason and with clarification.
Yes, we have dropped probes and crawlers on Mars in the last 10 years.
But we as humankind have done very little to fix inner space or wander outside of that shell around us that is currently cluttered with detritus, Google satellites, spy satellites and weapons.
So. As much as I would like to celebrate this coming anniversary (and don’t get me wrong… I have fond memories from 1969 and all…) – but it just feels like my fellow spacemen and spacewomen (and I) have been standing in an open field this whole time.
Just looking up.
As solstice approaches - We remember Tiananmen Square · Thursday June 4, 2009 by colin newell
Read about it here
We remember…
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