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From today, only 100 per cent verified Fairtrade Certified and Starbucks Shared Planet verified coffee will be served in espresso-based beverages at Starbucks stores in the UK and Ireland.

The move is expected to increase the amount of Fairtrade Certified coffee sold in the UK and Ireland by 18 per cent and generate a Fairtrade premium of about £350,000 in sales in the coming year.

Starbucks is already the largest buyer of Fairtrade coffee in the world, and the switch to Fairtrade Certified espresso will add to the £2.5 million payment that the coffee store makes to farmers every year. 

Darcy Wilson-Rymer, managing director of Starbucks UK & Ireland, said: 'Starbucks has always been committed to ethical sourcing. USing 100 per cent Fairtrade Certified coffee for Starbucks espresso is just one aspect of our work together. We are also sharing our collective knowledge and best practices in responsible sourcing to further improve the livelihoods of coffee farmers as well as to ensure the availability of the highest quality coffee.' 

The coffee will be sourced largely in Latin America, specifically Guatemala, Costa Rica and Peru. Carlos Vargas Leiton, financial manager of Coopetarrazu, an organisation of 2,600 farmers in Costa Rica, including 457 women who are sole providers for their families, said it would benefit from 'guaranteed minimum prices and Fairtrade premiums', adding: 'We will invest in environmental and social programmes to improve the well-being of our members and communities, such as health and education initiatives to benefit women and farm workers, with a direct impact on more than 50,000 people.'

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