
Have you thought about coffee farmers lately? Maybe after my first cappuccino.
YES
I only drink free trade organic coffee
NO
Pass the cinnamon and sugar.
The US is the largest consumer of coffee in the world. However, it cannot grow its own coffee and has to import from countries in the southern hemisphere. There is an increasing awareness among consumers as to how the coffee is being made.
According to the US Department of Labor, 75 agricultural products used in the US are produced by child or forced labor – most of these products are coffee.
These practices are prevalent in 14 countries that export coffee. As reported by The Guardian, the conditions in some Brazilian coffee farms are “analogous to slavery” – the same farms that may have supplied US companies such as Nestle and Jacobs Douwe Egberts. Often, workers in these farms are forced to work to pay off their debts.