Building Demand for Sustainable Products

The success of sustainable products hinges on their ability to deliver economic value. They must perform as well as conventional products at a competitive price. In a global marketplace that rarely recognizes the full social and environmental costs of products, this is an ongoing challenge. Yet consumers consistently say they prefer products that are produced in an ethically and environmentally responsible manner.

We see this as an opportunity, for both our business and the world at large. By raising awareness of the advantages of products such as Fair Trade Certified™, Rainforest Alliance Certified® and organic coffees, we can help build demand for, while broadening adoption of, sustainable business practices that create better lives for people throughout our value chain.

We work to increase public awareness of responsibly grown coffee through certification  programs, such as Fair Trade (www.fairtradeusa.org, www.fairtrade.ca), which assures farmers a minimim price for their coffee and links farmers directly with importers, and Rainforest Alliance (www.ra.org), which encourages farmers to grow crops sustainably over the long term.