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Starbucks Supports Farmers On Coffee Day

Did you buy a Mexico Chiapas Coffee at Starbucks on National Coffee Day? If you did, take a moment to feel good about yourself. No, really. It’s Okay! You helped a Coffee farmer in Central America fight back against the biggest threat to his livelihood that he’s ever faced…

Coffee Leaf Rust - © Smartse - via WikipediaCoffee Leaf Rust: It destroys the leaves, rots Coffee berries and threatens the livelihood
of thousands of Coffee farmers.

For every cup of Mexico Chiapas Coffee sold on September 29, Starbucks donated a new, baby Coffee Tree to a farmer in Central America whose plantation has been hit by Coffee Rust, a cantankerous fungus that is spreading northward ever year. Starbucks is spearheading a charitable push to help Coffee farmers across the region replace old, fungus-fouled plants with new, rust resistant ones.

The Coffee Day promo is actually part of a larger, ongoing initiative to help Coffee farmers.

“In just one year, the company has donated enough funds to plant 18 million rust-resistant coffee trees, 10 million of which have already been distributed this past Summer to farmers in need,” Starbucks said in a statement.

But wait…

Before you get all misty-eyed and start calling Starbucks a philanthropist, remember that the ravaging of older Coffee trees across Central America by Rust fungus is helping them, too. Starbucks gets a lot of Coffee from the region and would have to undertake a massive restocking and re-branding of its Coffees if that supply dried up. So, it’s more of a win-win thing. But that’s good! and is is heartening to see Starbucks is taking the situation in hand and assuming a leadership role.

~ Maggie J.