Coffee

About this book

Coffee is one of the most valuable exports, generating billions of dollars in corporate profits each year, even while the majority of the world's 25 million coffee families live in relative poverty. But who is responsible for such vast inequality? In this book, the author argues that state action, both good and bad, has been and continues to be central to the everyday operations of the coffee industry, even in today's world of "free trade." Combining history with an analysis of key factors shaping the coffee business, he challenges the notion that injustice in the industry can be solved "one sip at a time." Instead, he points to the centrality of coffee statecraft both for preserving the status quo and for initiating meaningful changes to the coffee industry in the future.