Drink Coffee, Support Mozilla

MikeCapone writes "Heavy coffee-drinking Mozilla fans take notice, MozillaZine has a story on how some coffee company has dedicated a selection of gourmet coffees to helping the Mozilla foundation. Only half the profits go to Mozilla, but the coffee seems good..."

1/2 is HUGE

[squashed]

1/2 is a significant %, compared to the typical promotion offering a % to non-profit causes.

Flavored

[vonFinkelstien]

Now if they only offered some nice flavored coffees in the Mozilla Coffee section (and cheap shipping to Sweden).

As a side note, I have found coffee strength in different countries to be interesting. I'm from N. America, and when I moved to the Czech Republic, my collegues would allows comment on how strong I made the coffee (they would also make 1/2 liter of tea with ONE tea bag--When I makes tea, I makes tea. When I makes water, I makes water--Finnegans Wake).

Then I moved to Sweden. My in-laws quickly informed me that they only drink Skona roast by Zeagas (a VERY strong coffee blend) and showed me how to make it at their incredibly high strength level. All of my corporate English student who have been to the U.S. complains about the piss-weakness of the coffee there.

Re:Flavored

[CableModemSniper]

Acording to the article you can actually get any of the coffees on the site and make a note about Mozilla and they will still get the money. Can't help with the shipping.

Re:Good deal...

[zulux]

This cofees is *NOT* expensive - good shade-grown organic cofee is well woth $10 a pound. A lot of effort, time and care goes into the product, and the results are outstanding.

Folgers is about $4.50 a poind, and this cofee is more that 10 times better - in armoa, taste, and in good-will (suporting non-plantation growers that care about the product.)

I'm not an environmentalist wacko - with the typical cofee plantations (in South America) are terrible for our environment. Basically they slash and burn, orver fertalise, the mechanically harverst - and once there done with that peice of land they move on to the next bit of rain-forest.

$10 is nothing for us computer programers - it takes you an extra three minutes to earn the diferance and the results are worth it.

Re:Fair trade coffee?

[Anonymous Coward]

I only buy fair trade organic shade-grown arabica French roast beans.

Well, sometimes I buy espresso roast if it looks good or French roast is sold out.

If these enviro beans were fair trade, they'd say it. Addicts like me will pay ridiculous prices for the real deal.

Re:What is "fair"?

[Eric Ass Raymond]

which is hardly "fair" since not everyone is allowed to compete.

Are you familiar with the concept of "Fair Trade Products"?

Many coffee farmers around the world receive market payments that are lower than the costs of production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt. Intensive coffee farming can also lead to pesticide pollution and deforestation.

Fair Trade works to correct these imbalances by guaranteeing a minimum wage for small producers' harvests and by encouraging organic and sustainable cultivation methods. Fair trade farmers are provided badly needed credit and assured a minimum of $1.26 per pound. In comparison, the world price usually hovers around $1 per pound, but most farmers earn less than 50 cents per pound since they are forced to sell to exploitative middlemen. With the profits generated from receiving fair wages, coffee growers can invest in health, education, and environmental protection.

It's about giving the consumer a choice. A bit like forcing (at least here in Europe) the manufacturer of GM food to clearly label their frankenfood honestly as "Genetically Manipulated". Here, the "Fair Trade" label helps a socially conscientious consumer to avoid exploitative producers.

Re:RTFA!!!

[ceejayoz]

Half the profit, not the entire purchase price.

If they make a profit of $0.10 on a $10.00 bag of coffee, Mozilla gets $0.05, not $5.00.

Re:Good deal...

[Weh]

I use two kinds, both are 100% Arabica espresso coffee: Lavazza [lavazza.com] which runs at about 3Euro/250g and Illy [illy.com] which costs about double that. As to world coffee consumption, here's the stats [coffeeresearch.org].

Re:Europe is not about fair trade

[Eric Ass Raymond]

They ban US GM foods. Labelling isn't enough for Europe. They take away the choice from consumers.

The GM food is banned in Europe right now because US corps refuse to have their products labelled as GM. They'd rather not import the products at all and try to force the issue through WTO. Labelling is EU's only requirement.

Re:RTFA!!!

[cheesyfru]

Coffee roasters tend to make a huge profit on their wares. It's one of the most profitable places in the chain, which is why you see so many of them. Mozilla is probably getting a decent chunk out of the sale.

Coffee addicts: You can get the same beans at half the price, roast them yourself with a popcorn popper at home and end up with fresher coffee. Sweet Maria's is a wonderful thing.

Re:Good deal...

[instantnoodles]

exactly...

I hate it went Corporations exploit charities. Like the Yoplait caps/breast cancer. WTF do I have to mail them in for you to donate the dime?

Some corporations are evil though. One vacumn cleaner company gave $1 to a breast cancer for each product it sold. However, it limited this amount to $500,000, and it spent 2 million promoting how good a company it was!

Also, the Walk for Breast Cancer is also crap. Its run by a for profit company(!). In some of its fundraisers, none of the money raised went to charities. It all went to paying employees and advertising.

Beware!