Fair Grounds Newsletter from Cafe Campesino

888.532.4728 (tel)
229.924.2468 (tel)
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Autumn Brings Both Celebration and Challenge
Monthly Special: Tanzania Peaberry Coffee
Hurricane Stan Ravages Our Guatemalan Friends
Report From the Fair Trade Futures Conference
Café Campesino Community Caravan
Customer Spotlight: Sobornost for the World Foundation's World Village Fair Trade Market
Fair Trade Partner: Maya Tech Learning Centers
Test Your Coffee Knowledge
Quote of the Month
Past Issues of Fair Grounds

As we mentioned in last month's newsletter, we're thrilled that Café Campesino has been nominated for Co-op America's first ever People's Choice Award for Green Business of the Year. While we're currently in the middle of pack, you can help move us to the top of the list. Just go to www.coopamerica.org/peopleschoice, click the button for Café Campesino, enter your info at the bottom of the page, and hit the "Vote for this Business" button. It's easy and fun! Winners will be announced on November 5th at the Green Festival in San Francisco.

Just a quick reminder about our coffee supply: Virtually all of Cooperative Coffees' green beans had been stored in New Orleans at the nation's largest coffee storage facility when Hurricane Katrina hit. At present, it appears that all of our coffee that had been in storage there has, in fact, been lost. As a result, we will continue to experience periodic shortages of some of our coffees for the next one to two months; however, we should be able to fulfill most orders and, as usual, provide you with some of the best roasted-to-order Fair Trade, organic coffee in the country. We thank all of our loyal customers for their understanding and support during this challenging time.

In this issue of Fair Grounds, we provide an update on yet another hurricane - Stan - and its devastating impact on the people of Guatemala. We also feature a report from Tripp and Bill on the first ever Fair Trade Futures Conference, introduce you to the KNCU Cooperative in Tanzania (producer of this month's special coffee), share our Fair Trade adventures in Community Caravan, and spotlight Sobornost for the World Foundation's World Village Fair Trade Market and our Fair Trade Partner, Maya Tech Learning Centers. All this plus a new trivia question and recipe make for a jam-packed issue. Settle back with a mug of your favorite brew and read on...

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This month we are thrilled to offer a most special... well... special: Fair Trade, organic Tanzania Peaberry Coffee! We have a limited supply of this unusual coffee, so once it's gone it may be a while before we get more. So be sure to order as soon as possible to get your dibs on this full-flavor, Full City roast! To receive your 10% off of the regular price, please use promotion code tanz05 when prompted at check-out or when you call in to order.

This month's special is produced by the Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union (KNCU), which was founded in 1984 and became certified by FLO in 1993. Located in the northeast region of Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, KNCU produces 600 containers of the Keint and Bourbon coffee varieties. Each year, the 80,000 members of KNCU elect delegates from their membership to develop and implement policies and programs for the large collective of indigenous farmers.

As a result of their Fair Trade coffee production, the members of KNCU have established a collective educational fund to help build and run schools for the farmers' children, formed a cooperative bank to provide members with access to loans and other credit and savings programs, founded a coffee export marketing department so that they can sell more of their coffee directly, and invested in a comprehensive organic production program.

KNCU coffee is cultivated at an elevation of 850m - 1,500m, is wet-processed and dried in the sun. Their harvest season runs from July through January.

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The following is an update from Jeronimo Bollen from Manos Campesinas in Guatemala on the devastation caused by Hurricane Stan:

The damage done all over the country by hurricane Stan still hasn't been estimated. However, the general overview is pretty clear. The most affected areas were on the Pacific coast where the Ministry of Agriculture estimates that flooding destroyed 50% and 80% of the region's crops; the Western Highlands, where the landslides in Panabaj and Tacaná, among others, took place; and some areas in the southeast of the country that were hit with severe flooding. The rest of the country has experienced minor problems, basically the loss of electricity, lack of communication (phone and mobile), and problems with the supply of food, drinking water and gasoline.

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Café Campesino's own Tripp Pomeroy and Bill Harris were among more than 700 business leaders, Fair Trade advocates and other individuals from 15 countries who took part in the 2005 Fair Trade Futures Conference held in Chicago from September 30th through October 2nd. The first of its kind, the conference featured over 50 workshops and plenary sessions covering a wide range of trade topics. Bill delivered closing remarks to the attendees, challenging them to carry the energy and knowledge gained at the conference back to their local communities.

The conference was an extraordinary gathering, bringing some of the country's most dynamic business entrepreneurs together to work on trade strategies that effectively address social and economic issues. It truly was a confirmation that Fair Trade is working and offers a viable alternative for the international trade community.

The seeds for this event were planted at the Carter Center in Atlanta last year when Bill, Tripp and other organizers met with President Carter to discuss the Fair Trade movement. At that meeting, President Carter challenged the group to envision tangible ways to increase the consumer visibility of Fair Trade. In recognition of the first Fair Trade Futures conference, President Carter said the following in a letter to conference attendees in Chicago: "We proudly support the growing Fair Trade movement, which uplifts the basic principles of human rights and human dignity and takes positive, concrete steps towards poverty reduction."

For more information about the Fair Trade Futures Conference, visit: www.fairtradefederation.org.

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This year's 2005 Green Festival in DC was another smashing success. Lee, Tripp and Bill served over 1,200 samples of coffee to the event's more than 17,000 attendees and spent the festive weekend discussing Fair Trade with truly enthusiastic attendees as well as the many like-minded vendors who also exhibited at the show. The Cooperative Coffees' Fair Trade Coffee Workshop, held at the Festival on Saturday, was very well received, as were the more than 100 pounds of Coop members' coffee and Fair Trade coffee paraphernalia that were raffled off during the festival!

Thanks goes out to Geoffrey who, once again, served up Café Campesino at the 2005 BRAG Georgia BikeFest, despite unusually wet weather. Café Campesino also thanks its loyal supporters who rode in this Fall's BRAG and distracted Geoffrey from his soggy environs.

During the weekend of October 28-30, Bill will be in Atlanta for the first ever 2005 Bioneers SE FORUM, of which Café Campesino is a proud sponsor. This exciting event will bring together people from diverse communities including the art, education, environment, business, spiritual, healing, organic foods, political and social justice arenas to celebrate their visionary and practical solutions to many of the issues confronting the county today. Bioneers SE is a 3-day region-wide town hall meeting and progressive summit and showcase focusing on sustainable ideas, programs, services and technologies. Bill will be a speaker at the conference as part of the Values in the Marketplace panel to speak about Fair Trade. The panel will also cover local economy and environmental businesses. To learn more and register for the Bioneers SE, visit their website.

The ONE Campaign has declared November 1st Fair Trade Day and local organizers for ONE in Atlanta have put together an educational event, at which Bill, Lee and Tripp will be speaking, for community members who are interested in learning more about Fair Trade. The event is scheduled for November 1st and will run from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm and is being hosted by Jake's Ice Cream at 515 North McDonough Street in Decatur. This event is open to the public. To learn more, visit The ONE Campaign's local events webpage.

On November 5th, Lee, Tripp and Bill will be serving up Café Campesino coffee while Tripp's wife showcases their selection of beautiful Three Frontiers Trading Company Fair Trade crafts at this year's Pecan Festival in Americus. To see Three Frontiers' online catalogue, visit www.threefrontiers.com.

On the evening of November 5th, Tripp will head off to Lake Okonee (about an hour southeast of Atlanta) to sample Café Campesino coffee and talk Fair Trade at Apoteca, one Café Campesino's many great customers.

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Sobornost for the World Foundation's
World Village Fair Trade Market

Café Campesino is delighted to feature our friends at Sobornost for the World Foundation, Inc. and their World Village Fair Trade Market in this month's edition of Fair Grounds. For more than a year now, they have been steadfast supporters of Café Campesino.

The members of Sobornost for the World Foundation "aspire to promote justice, love and peace in a world scarred by inequality and injustice" and "strive to bring into our communities an awareness of the exploitation of our poor sisters and brothers in developing countries and to promote understanding of involvement in Fair Trade." Further, they "seek to extend aid to impoverished orphans and families, so each person can live in dignity, beginning in sub-Saharan Africa."

In addition to helping AIDS orphans in Kenya and Zambia with programs that provide financial support for their food, housing, education, and school supplies, Sobornost for the World works to foster dignity, solidarity, and subsidiarity towards Africa, as well as other developing nations through information, public advocacy, monetary aid and Fair Trade. In 2003, Sobornost opened the World Village Fair Trade Market, Long Island's first Fair Trade store, which sells Fair Trade products from over 20 developing countries.

What makes the World Village Fair Trade Market so special though is the genuine dedication of its volunteer staff to "peace, justice and equality for the people of developing nations by becoming a bridge for these nations while operating in America, and cultivating projects that enhance communication, trade and friendship." They work tirelessly to promote Fair Trade crafts and bring greater awareness to their customers, local communities and churches of Fair Trade and what can be achieved on a personal level by buying Fair Trade goods, contacting government officials, and joining national and international campaigns.

To learn more about Sobornost for the World Foundation and their World Village Fair Trade Market, visit www.fairtrademarket.org or call (631) 728-7880.

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Maya Tech Learning Centers, Inc. is a non-profit organization founded in 2004 which seeks to advance educational and technological opportunities for underdeveloped Mayan communities in Guatemala through comprehensive, culturally appropriate computer access, training and development with internet and email capabilities; sponsorship and facilitation of community and youth-focused educational programming; and promotion of projects honoring Mayan heritage. In 2004, Maya Tech opened its first computer center in Nahualá, a growing Quiché Mayan town in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. Born and raised in Nahualá, the organization's founder, Camilo Macario, has developed a plan to bridge the digital divide between first and third world communities using current technology. To learn more about Maya Tech and how you can get involved, visit www.mayatechlc.org.

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We're giving away coffee!

Think you know a lot about coffee? This month's intriguing question can be found here. Entering is easy and it's FUN!

Julie Hood is this month's Coffee Knowledge winner. She knew correctly that the first wholesale coffee roasting company and the first newspaper advertisement featuring coffee both appeared in 1790 (B). Congratulations, Julie

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"In prosperity, our friends know us; in adversity, we know our friends."

-- John Churton Collins

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Fair Grounds is produced by:

Café Campesino
725 Spring Street
Americus, GA 31709

Contact Information:

Orders and General Information
Phone - 888.532.4728, 229.924.2468
Fax - 229.924.6250
http://www.cafecampesino.com
www.cafecampesino.com/store/index.php
info@cafecampesino.com

Staff:
Lee Harris
Tripp Pomeroy
Bill Harris
Kayci LeRoy
Kristy Nickerson

Fair Grounds is designed and delivered by:

Starstruck Design
335 West Gill Road
Gill, MA 01354

Contact Information:
Don Kruger
Lynn Nichols
Phone - 413.863.7752
Fax - 413.863.7752
http://www.starstruckdesign.com

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