Organic fair trade coffee has gained popularity in the last few years in the United States, but it now seems that Fair Trade Coffee - which is coffee that is sold  for a fair price each harvest so that these coffee farmers are able to achieve a decent living wage - might not be as good as has been claimed.
According to Canada’s “The Gazette,” the minimum price paid to fair grade coffee-growers has not changed in ten years, although the cost of living throughout the entire world has surely changed in that amount of time. As it stands, coffee producers are guaranteed a minimum price of $1.10 U.S. (in United States dollars) per pound of Arabica coffee beans - or $1.21 depending on what part of the world the coffee is grown in - even when the market price, which is a volatile market in and of itself, drops below that. The unfairness of this pricing plan is obvious, yet it must also be noted that without a doubt, Fair Trade Coffee pricing is complicated. On top of this minimum price coffee growers are given a social premium - which increased in June, 2007 from 5 cents per pound to 10 cents - that aids communities in building schools, health centers and other amenities, and an organic premium - raised from 15 cents to 20 cents - is paid to organic coffee growers since their costs are higher. All said this leads to a tricky pricing plan in order to assure everyone a fair balance.
Without a doubt, we should all continue to enjoy our morning cups of Fair Trade Coffee, whether organic or not, but it never hurts to be aware of everything that is affected - both positively and negatively - when we do what we can to be conscious and just members of society.