By CRAIG HARRISP-I REPORTER
Oxfam America, a deep-pocketed charity, has turned up the heat on Starbucks by taking out full-page newspaper ads Thursday that urge the Seattle-based coffee giant to sign a licensing agreement with Ethiopia.
The controversy centers upon the Ethiopian names Sidamo, Yirgacheffe and Harar, monikers for high-priced gourmet coffee that Starbucks sells. Boston-based Oxfam America said if Starbucks would sign the agreement an additional $88 million would flow into Ethiopia's coffee industry.
The charity, an international relief organization that said it raised $79 million last year, contends that for every cup of Starbucks coffee sold, just 3 cents goes to coffee farmers in Ethiopia.
"They (farmers) are producing some of the finest coffees in the world and getting next to nothing in return," said Helen DaSilva, Oxfam spokeswoman.
Starbucks issued a statement Thursday saying Oxfam is misleading the public and the charity is not helping Ethiopian coffee farmers.
"We share the goal of benefiting the Ethiopian coffee farmer; however, Oxfam's position deflects focus away from the farmer," Starbucks said. Audrey Lincoff, a Starbucks spokeswoman, said the company has increased its average purchase price of Ethiopian coffees by 50 percent. But she would not disclose what Starbucks pays. The company also would not confirm or dispute Oxfam's 3-cent figure.
Ethiopia is trying to secure the rights to the three coffee names through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The country has succeeded in its attempt to trademark the name Yirgacheffe, but a final decision has not been made on the other two. Holding the trademark would allow growers to charge more.
The National Coffee Association of USA, of which Starbucks is an influential member, has filed protests, arguing the names are generic.
Oxfam recently has been putting pressure on Starbucks, which had $6.4 billion in sales last year, to let the Ethiopian government own those names.
In its statement, Starbucks said signing a trademark agreement might hurt farmers because roasters may stop buying Ethiopian coffees.
DaSilva said Oxfam paid $65,000 for the ads, which ran Thursday in the Seattle P-I, The Seattle Times and The New York Times' West Coast editions.
The ad says: "Starbucks has a team of lawyers to make sure that no one steals its name." Below that line is a picture of a white man in business attire with his feet propped up.
Underneath is a picture of an elderly black man with the words: "The Ethiopian coffee farmer has you."
DaSilva said the ads were placed in Seattle's major papers because the city is an important market to Starbucks.
"It is in their backyard," DaSilva said. "It's a big city with a great coffee culture where people care about coffee. It's important for people to know behind the scenes what is going on."
This report includes information from The Associated Press. P-I reporter Craig Harris can be reached at 206-448-8138 or craigharris@seattlepi.com.