Sunday, December 29, 2002


romanticism

"it's a very romantic product to handle," sez the coffee trader. it's true: coffee can be as romantic as wine -- nothing is as cozy and domestic, as close and loving, as having that delicious morning cup on a comfy couch in your jammies while you read the paper with your loved one.

however, the reality of the coffee crisis as documented in the article this quote comes from is far from sweet. and the article closes on what for me is a sour note: "the beautiful thing about the commodities market is that these things sort themselves out," sez another trader nonchalantly. "it's the purest form of supply and demand."

ah! but it might not sort itself out -- when the farmers have gone bankrupt and pulled up their carefully tended, shade-growing, 50-year-old arabica trees, when the coffee pickers have migrated illegally to chicago, what will be left? who will grow the quality specialty coffee?

won't nestle or another member of the "big four" just buy the land cheap and plant sun-grown robusta under contract with an agribusiness? isn't coffee overall diminished by this prospect? this problem merits more consideration than the article gives. . .

posted by fortune | 7:49 PM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 0 comments