Dublin-based coffee firm Moyee has stated that companies in developed nations need to do more than simply adhering to “fair trade” principles. The basic idea behind the concept is that producers of raw materials like coffee, cacao, and others should receive a fair share of the profits made from the materials they supply for world-class products.
According to the Killian Stokes, co-founder of Moyee Coffee Ireland and UK, his firm looked at the unfairness and inequality within the coffee industry and decided to adopt what they have dubbed the “fair chain” principle.
Based on this principle, not only is harvesting of the coffee beans that the firm uses harvested in Ethiopia, it is also roasted, ground and packaged in Ethiopia too. Such practices mean more of the work is done in the country of origin, creating more jobs alongside generating more profit for the country.
Killian affirms that such practices are more equitable as under traditional systems 98 percent of profits are exported along with the raw produce benefiting supply chain businesses in the west while farmers get a maximum 2 percent of the shelf price of the final product.
Although there’s a long way to go in this regard, Killian believes that with the world starting to pay attention to broken business models in international trade, change is coming.