When you visit your local coffee shop do you ask if the beans or tea are Fair Trade or Rainforest Alliance certified? The concept of goods coming directly from the farmer with a reduction in middle man activity and the farmer getting a fair price for their goods is an excellent case study in social justice – but what does this mean in practice? All the major supermarkets now sell Fair Trade goods, and in particular, tea and coffee are good examples. There are now well over 1,500 different Fair Trade products on sale in the UK; the majority are being sold at a premium price, but where are the profits going?

The supporters of Fair Trade point to a consistent (fair) market price for coffee and tea that allows producers to produce more or diversify into other crops. In addition, Fair Trade supports social projects in the farming areas to improve conditions and provide support to growers and workers.

Critics of Fair Trade are quick to point out that the premium price paid for this coffee and tea is nothing more than a subsidy keeping the price artificially high. They argue that this goes against the law of supply and demand and produces a market where there is over-production as more farmers will be attracted to grow produce that they can sell at the inflated price.

As far as Fair Trade goods in supermarkets and coffee shops are concerned is this just a case of ‘greenwashing’ so that these companies can feel good about the effort they are making toward helping the downtrodden farmer while still making a good profit, or are they not so cynical. Again the only way to determine the truth is to ask questions. So if you want to buy Fair Trade do ask what proportion of the profits goes to the grower of the product. If the answer is 5p out of every £2.50 jar of instant coffee then it is likely that Fair Trade is not worth the effort and you should buy the normal coffee at a lower price and then give a sum you feel appropriate to a development charity.

For those in the know, a good cup of coffee is as much a delight as a fine wine. So what makes a good cup of coffee and what does the coffee aficionado look out for? In the same way as wine producing countries, coffee producing countries rely on their climate, soil and the altitude of the plantation to produce the quality of coffee bean (not forgetting the processing and roasting of the beans). There are three main coffee growing areas in the world and these are East Africa/Arabian Peninsula, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America (all of these are situated in tropical climates between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn). The majority of large commercial growers produce their coffee from two varieties – the Coffea arabic (Arabica) and Coffea canephora (Robusta) although there are several other species which are used by smaller growers as well, such as Coffea liberica and Coffea excelsa.

Arabica coffee beans are grown at high altitude and have a more refined flavour than other common coffee species such as Robusta, which is grown for its high yield and disease resistance at lower altitude but has a much more acidic flavour. Arabica, which accounts for 75% of world production, produces quality coffee beans for the best cup of coffee, and this is recognised the world over.

But where are the best coffee beans grown?

The jury is out on this, although there are several small coffee growing regions which lay claim to the highest quality best tasting beans. One of the most well known coffees has to be Jamaica Blue Mountain, which has a gained a reputation of being some of the most expensive coffee in the world. The beans are grown in the 2,300 m high mountains between Kingston and Port Maria in a perfect climate of high rainfall with cool misty conditions and well drained fertile soil. 

A definite contender for best coffee also has to be Kona coffee (Arabica) grown in Hawaii on the slopes of Mount Hualalai and Mauna Loa in the North and South Kona districts. Again here there is an excellent climate with bright sunny mornings, humid rainy afternoons and mild nights to produce the best coffee growing conditions.

Another region which is rapidly gaining a reputation for quality coffee production is Indonesia, where the variety of climate and altitude gives such a great variety of flavours and also provides us with the favourite term for a cup of coffee – a ‘cup of Java’. But no matter what local knowledge you have there is no substitute for trying some of these high quality coffees and determining what taste and blend is good for you. The best person to ask advice on what flavour characteristics you should be looking out for is your best buddy, your barista.