Black Gold: Fair Trade In The Coffee Industry

Words: 534
Pages: 3

Introduction
Most people wake up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. It is our go-to major, or very own adrenaline infused, caffeine laced wake up calls. With the passage of time, MNC coffee companies have emerged, which rule industry worth over $80 billion. In the recent times coffee has emerged as the most valuable trading commodity in the world after oil. Throughout the world, while coffee lovers get their cups of lattes and cappuccinos, the price paid to coffee farmers remains have gone an all time low. Several farmers are struggling from bankruptcy as they attempt to find buyers who pay fair price. Incidentally this paradox has been prominent in the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia where many have been forced to abandon their coffee fields.
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The issue of fair trade in the industry has been going for a while now and while many are countering the authenticity of the program as it eliminates middle man, it is also countered that this puts additional pressure on farmers as a sustaining tool. The narrative of Black Gold strongly endorses fair trade as a route, and presents a stark and ethically challenged image of a world coffee price predominantly governed by the New York Coffee Exchange which sets a price to trade beans from developing country suppliers to developed world coffee processors. It is learned that while developing country suppliers buy from a large number of small farmers at a lower price (often less than limit set by NYCE), the developed country suppliers sell on to supermarkets and coffee shops at a much higher price. In addition it has been learned, that while the Fairtrade Foundation focuses on the ethical side of coffee production, the Rainforest Alliance is preoccupied with environmental concerns. They offer no guaranteed price for the farmers, and only focus on conserving biodiversity, and transform through land use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour. In this context, the film tells a sympathetic narrative of coffee farmers collectively. It tells a story of coffee drinking world that perceive utilitarian aspect behind the habit, yet fail to understand perspective of farmers. It is a serious cinematic engagement of trade and a political endorsement of the Fair Trade