In terms of coffee, a report from the company in 2016 noted that 99% of their coffee was now ethically sourced; moreover, the company has made it clear that they would like 100% of their coffee to be ethically sourced in the near future (Starbucks, 2016, p.20). Ethically sourced means that the farmers who grow the coffee beans are given pay that is fair, and that their coffee beans are taken from farmers who use sustainable methods.
Starbucks has coffee sourced from various plantations. These plantations are in: Hawaii, Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia (Boyer, K., 2013, fg. 1).
Starbucks cups are made from two layers - paper and polyethylene; in terms of paper, 90% of it is new paper, and 10% is considered “post-consumer paper” …show more content…
The raw materials are most often extracted from third world countries, whereas the production happens within the United States. This means that those in third world countries lose out on the opportunity to produce the products that they created, thus keeping the majority of the wealth within the corporation’s county.
After the coffee and cups are ready to be shipped out, they are sent to the various stores that are owned by Starbucks or by franchisees.
The company has “18,850 coffee shops in 40 countries”, and as such needs to distribute their product evenly (P. K., Jung, B., Ayala, E., & Eryorulmaz, A, 2017). To this end, the production centers send their products around the world.
The company has distribution centers in the United States, Canada, CAP, and EMA; centers are used to supply food, store supplies, and construction supplies (Starbucks Coffee Company, 2014, pg. 11 - 14).
This product is generally sold alongside other consumables, and the customer may choose to add milk, sugar, or other additives to the