Coffee is truly Black Gold for the coffee traders and buyers. However, the coffee farmers in other countries live in poverty. Ethopia is the largest producer of coffee, and the children of most of the coffee farmers do not have schools in their villages to attend to get an education. There is a coffee Co-op in Ethopia, and through this co-op coffee is sent from Ethopia all over the world. Sun dried coffee is the best coffee, but they are getting regular price. Supply of coffee on the world market used to be regulated. This collapsed in 1971 and farmers of coffee are paid an all time low.
The coffee co-op buys coffee from 101 individual coffee farmers. Farmers of coffee felt that one person controlled the market. They are usually paid around 8 cents per pound of coffee. Retail sales of coffee has increased from 30 million to 80 million, however coffee farmers are still paid around 8 cents per pound. The International price of coffee is established in
Workers who pick the coffee beans get paid 50 cents a day. Coffee trees grow to full size in 4 years, and the beans grow on the coffee trees the 5th year. These people are trapped in the hardship of their lives and live and die in poverty. Some of the coffee farmers could not afford to buy a pair of shoes, something we take for granite. There were recently Theraputic Feeding Centers set up because the people are suffering from malnutrition. There are 7 million people in Ethopia dependant upon emergency food aid. Food aid usually consists of raw wheat that they make into flour.
Independent coffee exporters buy low from the farmers and sell for a big profit. The social problem here is lack of money for food, education, and clothes. The poverty is so bad that they have 15 family members all living in one house because there is no money to build, or buy another house. Please consider this the next time you purchase coffee and buy Fair Trade Coffee.
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