Group Appeals to Farm Rio to End Partnership With Starbucks
The coffee chain has come under fire this spring for allegations of child labor, trafficking workers and unsafe working conditions on a Brazilian coffee farm. A civil 'John Doe' lawsuit was filed against Starbucks in late April in the U.S. by eight individuals with the support of the International Rights Advocates.
More from WWD
From The Archive: Rio de Janeiro Fashion Scene, 1974
Todd Snyder Opens Nashville Store in 12South Neighborhood
Dior Beauty Opens New Boutique in Miami
A Starbucks spokesperson said Wednesday that the claims asserted are 'without merit' and the company plans to 'vigorously defend the Starbucks brand.'
Coffee Watch filed a petition under section 307 of the Tariff Act asking U.S. Customs and Border Protection 'to block slavery-tainted Brazilian coffee in Starbucks' supply chains from entering the United States,' according to the letter, which was shared with WWD.
In a statement, the Seattle-based company said, 'Starbucks is committed to ethical sourcing of coffee including helping to protect the rights of people who work on the farms where we purchase coffee from,' adding that its Coffee and Farmer Equity Practices include the use of 'robust third-party verification and audits.'
Starbucks said it does not purchase coffee from all of the farms within Cooxupé's cooperative, which includes more than 19,000 coffee farm members. The spokesperson said, 'Starbucks purchases coffee from a small fraction of those farms, and only those who have been verified through our C.A.F.E. Practices, which are among the most stringent in the industry and have been continuously improved since their inception in 2004.'
Starbucks and Farm Rio revealed their partnership last month for a limited-edition collection of colorful drinkware and mini cold-cup keychains that launched in the coffee chain's stores in the U.S. and Canada. They are also being sold in its outposts in Brazil and in select markets in Latin America and in the Caribbean.
On Wednesday, a public relations firm working on behalf of the organizations that have appealed to Farm Rio's chief executive officer put the word out about their letter. Supporters of the letter are asking that Starbucks sever the partnership immediately or make it contingent on such demands as allowing employees worldwide to unionize and eradicating child labor from every part of its supply chain, ensuring farmworkers receive a living wage and publicly committing to upholding labor rights across its supply chain. The representative for the senders of the letter also provided a link to a video post that was made by the organization Contracs on 'X' that shows three protesters holding signs outside of a Farm Rio store in an unidentified shopping center in Brazil.
Representatives at Farm Rio could not be reached for comment Wednesday. An outside public relations company that works with Farm Rio acknowledged a request for comment about the request to end the Starbucks partnership and said it had been shared with Farm Rio, but there was not a response at press time.
Separately, Starbucks has been dealing with pushback from some employees in the U.S. about its new uniform policy. More than 1,000 workers — many of whom are associated with Starbucks Workers United — in 75 locations held a one-day strike in opposition to the mandatory dress code. Workers United is less than 5 percent of Starbucks' workforce, representing about 570 of its 10,000-plus stores, according to another Starbucks spokesperson. The letter to Farm Rio also noted that a fair contract with unionized workers in the U.S. has not been reached.
Best of WWD
Young Brooke Shields' Style Evolution, Archive Photos: From Runway Modeling & Red Carpets to Meeting Princess Diana
The Most Memorable French Open Tennis Outfits With Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka & More [PHOTOS]
Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter Tour' Outfits, Live Updates: Schiaparelli, Burberry, Loewe and More
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Wire
17 minutes ago
- Business Wire
AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Arab Reinsurance Company SAL
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B (Fair) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of 'bb' (Fair) of Arab Reinsurance Company SAL (Arab Re) (Lebanon). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. The ratings reflect Arab Re's balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and marginal enterprise risk management. Arab Re's balance sheet strength is underpinned by its risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), which was at the strongest level at year-end 2024. Arab Re's balance sheet strength is supported by its low underwriting leverage and continued growth of its offshore asset portfolio, which has improved the company's liquidity position and risk-adjusted capitalisation. Offsetting rating factors include the very high economic, political and financial system risks in Lebanon, where Arab Re is domiciled and holds just under 40% of its invested assets. Nevertheless, the company has increased its holdings of good quality foreign investments successfully in recent years, which has made its balance sheet more resilient to asset-side stress tests, including the full impairment of Lebanon-based assets. Arab Re has recorded profitable operating results in all of the past five years (2020-2024) and generated a robust return-on-equity ratio of 4.7% in 2024. The company has reported positive annual underwriting results since 2021, which reflect portfolio remediation actions taken by Arab Re's management, including exiting under-performing risks and the revision of underwriting guidelines. Investment income is expected to remain a strong contributor toward overall earnings, resulting from the company's relatively low underwriting leverage and the favourable global interest rate environment. Arab Re has a niche position in its core markets in the Middle East and North Africa region, built upon its original role as a reinsurer for Arab insurance markets and long-standing relationships with cedants. Despite the company's geographic reach, its growth potential is limited, as reinsurance markets in the region remain highly competitive. This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best's website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best's Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best's Credit Ratings, Best's Performance Assessments, Best's Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best's Ratings & Assessments.
New York Post
17 minutes ago
- New York Post
China's Pop Mart sees profit soar 400% as Labubu dolls fly off shelves around the world
The Chinese maker of the monster hit Labubu dolls said Tuesday its profit soared nearly 400% in the first half of the year as the toothy-grinned plush toy took the world by storm. Beijing-based Pop Mart posted net profit of $636 million, a 396.5% spike compared to the same period in 2024 – and handily beating estimates of a 350% rise over the entire year. Revenue skyrocketed 204.4% to roughly $1.93 billion, far stronger than the 62% growth seen in the same period last year. 3 Pop Mart said its net profit jumped nearly 400% on sales of its popular Labubu dolls. Gabriella Bass Shares in Pop Mart have popped more than 200% so far this year, making the Beijing-based toymaker more valuable than Barbie-maker Mattel and Hello Kitty owner Sanrio. Explosive demand for its Labubu dolls in overseas markets has driven the growth, since the toys sell for higher prices and generate bigger margins in regions like North America. The company sells its Labubu dolls – which have big eyes, sharp-toothed grins and tall ears like a bunny – in 'blind boxes,' so shoppers don't know the exact color they're getting until they open the package. That has turned certain rare Labubu designs into pricey collectibles – going for hundreds of dollars on eBay, with one first-generation figurine recently selling for $150,000 at an auction in Beijing. Celebrities like K-pop singer Lisa, Rihanna and David Beckham have helped fuel the Labubu fever, wearing the tiny monster dolls as keychains on luxury handbags or car keys. Pop Mart said Tuesday it would boost its supply of the dolls, which have been sold out in stores around the world. 3 Labubu sales are expected to pass 10 million units a day by September, according to Pop Mart CEO Wang Ning. Getty Images CEO Wang Ning told Chinese state media last month that sales of Labubu are expected to pass 10 million units a day by September. He added that overseas growth has been much faster than expected, with foreign sales likely to exceed the domestic Chinese market this year. Labubu dolls are included in Pop Mart's 'The Monsters' intellectual property characters. The company said Tuesday that 'The Monsters' accounted for 34.7% of total revenue. 3 Pop Mart has 571 retail stores and 2,597 robot shops across 18 countries and regions. AFP via Getty Images Pop Mart has 571 retail stores – 40 of which opened in the first half of this year – and 2,597 robot shops across 18 countries and regions. It is rapidly expanding, with plans to open a total of 100 new outlets outside the mainland this year. Earlier this month, Pop Mart opened a megastore in Iconsiam, a massive Bangkok shopping center.
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Crypto-fueled pro-Adams super PAC slow to disclose spending to city panel
A cryptocurrency industry-backed super PAC that's boosting Mayor Adams' reelection run failed to disclose its spending to New York City campaign finance regulators for weeks, potentially opening it up to fines, the Daily News has learned. Empower NYC, which was launched by pro-Adams attorney Abe George earlier this year, has to date spent more than $330,000 on ads, consultants and get-out-the-vote canvassing efforts as the mayor faces long odds as an independent candidate in November's election. The PAC has raised more than $1 million so far, reportedly with a focus on courting donors from the cryptocurrency sector, which Adams has been a big proponent of and is trying to attract to New York. Amid continued political fallout from his corruption indictment, Adams has turned to the crypto sector to fundraise. Empower's spending and fundraising figures are detailed in filings it submitted to the state Board of Elections. But Empower NYC hasn't disclosed in a timely manner its spending to the city's Campaign Finance Board — which could subject the PAC to serious fines. By city law, PACs — which can pump as much money as they want into efforts advocating for political candidates — must start reporting expenditures every Monday to the CFB once they exceed $1,000 in spending on any given race. Empower's state filings show the PAC exceeded that level on July 21, when it paid $6,000 to Campaign Engine, a New Jersey-based fundraising consultant. George said Empower has 'complied with all state and city requirements' because it only in the past two weeks started spending directly on ads and canvassing efforts aimed at directly convincing 'voters to support Eric Adams.' That would still put Empower behind on at least a week of CFB reporting, which George blamed on 'login issues' the PAC has had with the board's database. Moroever, Empower's state filings say all of its spending, including all disbursements from July, have been made in furtherance of Adams' reelection effort 'We have been in contact with the CFB to try to resolve login issues we were having with the IEDS portal system which was corrected late last night which is why Empower filed their report with the CFB today,' George said Tuesday. The filings weren't available on the CFB's website Tuesday afternoon. A CFB spokesman declined to comment. CFB penalty guidelines say PACs that fail to report an expenditure on time can face fines of up to 25% of the total sum spent once they're more than five days late on a disclosure. Based on a review of its state filings, Empower could face fines as high as $50,000 due to some $200,000 in expenditures not being reported on time to the CFB, on top of any additional penalties the board could impose. Among Empower's expenditures is a $50,000 Aug. 6 payment to GOTV OPS, Inc., a Brooklyn consultant that has been deploying canvassers on behalf of the PAC to hand out pamphlets urging New Yorkers to support Adams in November's election. This week, the PAC drew criticism online after it emerged canvassers have been handing out a pamphlet that some said made it seem like David Dinkins, the ex-mayor who died in 2020, supports Adams' reelection. Unlike campaigns, PACs can spend unlimited amounts on backing a political candidate as long as they don't in any way coordinate with the candidate on its messaging and strategy. One of Empower's principals, Eric Lerner, appeared at the same crypto conference as Adams in Las Vegas in May, where he did an on-camera interview in which he favorably compared the mayor to President Trump and vowed to have the PAC 'buy media ads and do social media marketing' to advocate for his reelection. As first reported by Politico, Lerner's appearance raised eyebrows from watchdogs, who argued it gave at least the appearance of coordination. A spokesman for Adams, who's dealing with his own compliance issues with the CFB, didn't immediately return a request for comment Tuesday. Solve the daily Crossword
