Fair Trade Coffee Industry in Britain Research Proposal

Fair Trade Coffee Industry in Britain - Research Proposal Example Coffee itself has a profound relationship with the British culture and economy. The industry has grown rapidly and in the recent years it is now almost impossible to walk down a British high street without being mesmerized by the scent of freshly roasted coffee beans. The coffee culture has created a new and unique social space in Britain. Neither work nor home, nor the pub, the coffee shop has survived criticism of being over- subscribed to become, at least for now, an integral part of everyday life. It is worth noting at the outset that Fair Trade is still considered a niche in the commercial world since as of the year 2002 it has only represented 0.24% of the coffee marketplace. The relations with customers under a Fair Trade approach establish channels of communications so that the producers can better understand the needs of its customer base .The two economic forces that coincide to create the FT marketplace is a two way relationship between developing and developed nation in w hich the emerging markets or developed entities act as the producers of the valuable commodity while the population in the developed worlds act as the consumers and distributors of FT coffee. During its inception FT coffee used to be specialty premium products whose availability was limited to specialty gourmet shops or special food item stores. (Plunkett Research. 2007) . The market structure of the FT segment of the coffee industry has change a lot in scope and the amount of opportunities for players that desired to capitalize by becoming a member of some part of the supply chain of the business which includes the farmers, international commodity distributors, or the final sales point distributor which may be involved in the business of selling pounds of coffee prepared or hot drinks that fit the needs of customer of consuming a great tasting coffee product. It is worth noting then the scope of Free trade coffee on this lucrative market and predicts a way ahead for marketers and corporate giants eyeing this segment of the market share. The nature of Fair Trade in coffee has been classified as"a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade.. Fair Trade organisations (backed by consumers) are engaged actively in supporting producers, awareness raising and in campaigning for changes in the rules and practice of conventional international trade". (official definition adopted by the European Fair Trade Association (EFTA)) This conception of the Fair Trade definition is thus meant to engulf the ambit of welfare objectives of higher incomes; improved working conditions; support for local craft traditions; and greater security through guaranteed prices (Hines, Charlotte and Ashley Ames. 2000.) The last factor relates to the economic aspect here as the high fluctuations in commodity prices cause problems for the growers by leading to incomes insufficient to repay loans and subsequent eviction from the land (Hines, Charlotte and Ashley Ames. 2000.) The coffee crisis dates back to the Coffee agreement of 1989.