Coffee, Mate

McDonald's Australia will sell certified-sustainable coffee

Posted at 5:16 PM on 27 May 2008

Starting next year, all coffee sold at McDonald's in Australia will be certified sustainable by the Rainforest Alliance. The country's 484 so-called McCafés make 5,000 cups of joe per hour; Mickey D's pockets 20 percent of the more than $1 billion that Aussies spend on away-from-home coffee. The Rainforest Alliance certifies coffee farms that reduce pesticide use and treat farmers decently. Enthuses Catriona Noble, chief operating officer of McDonald's Australia, "For our customers, the decision means they can feel even better about the great tasting McCafé coffee they love, while for our business it marks another important step forward in realizing our commitment to sustainability and sustainable business practices."

sources: The West Australian, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Courier-Mail
see also, in Grist: A review of six Central American coffees

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Comments: (4 comments)

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Hey, there goes Elvis!

Now about that nagging thing about factory farmed beef products...

by swag at 8:33 AM on 28 May 2008

Rainforest Alliance is highly problematic

Let's not forget that the Rainforest Alliance is a highly problematic organisation, in that it is in the process of killing yet another few hundred thousand small farmers in the tropics, with their war against palm oil.

I would never buy coffee certified by such a dubious organisation.

by Jonas at 11:47 AM on 28 May 2008

Confused...

in that it is in the process of killing yet another few hundred thousand small farmers in the tropics, with their war against palm oil.

You're confused Jonas. The Rainforest Alliance's primary objective is to stop the expansion of palm oil plantations into rainforests, not "kill" the ones that're already there.

In th few areas where the Rainforest Alliance stopped expansion, or "took" plantations, they paid the farmers more than fair-market value for the land. And they only did it after the owners agreed.

The rainforest Allaince doesn't have imminent domain powers, ya know? (Though I sometimes wish they did)

by Tasermons Partner at 2:33 PM on 28 May 2008

Rainforest Alliance

The Rainforest Alliance is committed to protecting forests and providing sustainable livelihoods for small farmers. To clarify, we do not purchase land. We are currently developing a program to halt the expansion of palm oil plantations into rainforests. For more information on our work, please go to www.rainforest-alliance.org.

Jennifer Bass
Rainforest Alliance

by JBass at 11:57 AM on 03 Jun 2008

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