Ethiopian coffee farmers show commitment to trademark initiative
By Oxfam Ato Gemede Robe, farmer, speaks at the coffee ceremony.
Tadesse Meskela, manager of Oxfam partner Oromia Coffee Farmers
Cooperative Union, looks on.  In a public show of solidarity,
coffee farmers from around Ethiopia traveled to their capital
city this December to demand that Starbucks recognize their
country's ownership of its coffee names.  Following a
traditional coffee ceremony featuring some of Ethiopia's finest
coffees—Harar, Sidamo, and Yirgacheffe—the farmers said they
wanted the opportunity to make more money off the coffees they
cultivate, which command such high prices among consumers.
While Starbucks charges as much as $26 a pound for Ethiopian
specialty coffees, Ethiopian coffee farmers get only 5-10
percent of that price. For this reason, Ethiopia has asked
Starbucks to sign a trademark agreement that would give Ethiopia
the ability to control the use of its coffee names, occupy a
stronger negotiating position with fore