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Starbucks Blending Business And Duty
Lisa Siregar | September 06, 2009

(Photo courtesy of Starbucks) (Photo courtesy of Starbucks)
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Indonesian branches of the world’s largest coffee shop empire are trying to infuse a little responsibility into each cup of Joe.

Starbucks’s Shared Planet program, launched last year at the company’s annual conference in the Middle East, aims to find ethical sources of coffee beans, reduce damage to the environment, and engage with communities.

“The Shared Planet program is about helping people live a better life and doing business in a better way,” said Anthony Cottan, the director of Starbucks Coffee Indonesia.

That means using local beans to create products such as its Sumatra-Peru blend, which mixes beans from the Asia Pacific and Latin America. The blend is marketed as having a sweet, roasted flavor with herbal complexities, and is used to make espresso and brewed coffee in the shops.

According to Cottan, Sumatran coffee beans create some of the most popular beverages for Starbucks customers worldwide. The company also gathers coffee from Aceh, Sulawesi and Java.

Sourcing coffee ethically means purchasing from farmers and suppliers who follow the company’s standards for social, economic and environmental responsibility. The guidelines were developed with help from Conservation International, an environmental nonprofit organization.

As part of the new effort, Starbucks representatives here now purchase espresso roasts from local farmers and suppliers. Previously, the company bought all of its ingredients from Starbucks International.

“Now our customers can feel good about ordering a beverage made from 100 percent responsibly sourced and ethically traded Starbucks espresso roast,” said Sari Siswarni, the merchandising manager.

To get the Fair Trade certificate, Starbucks participates in an annual audit for three years, Sari said.

Starbucks staff members are also encouraged to make contributions to their communities with at least two hours a week of volunteer work in their free time.

“In Bandung, for example, some of the baristas volunteered to teach street children,” Sari said.

Through September, about 200 Starbucks employees in Jakarta and Bandung had volunteered 1,272 hours of service.

To benefit the environment and its customers, the company has also been offering discounts to people who bring in their own mug or tumbler when they buy beverages. “We want to encourage our customers to use less paper and plastic cups,” Sari said.

Starbucks has also launched special Ramadhan Cups and are offering an Arabian Mocha Sanani coffee during the holy month in Indonesia.

The company currently has 73 coffee shops in Indonesia, and hopes to have all of its shops across the world participating in the Shared Planet program by 2015.