Fairtrade is raising its minimum coffee prices for 775,000 farmers. Plus, Starbucks workers complain of respiratory issues after using a new drink powder, and the Level Up coffee education and networking event returns this fall.
‘Fairtrade International Updates Minimum Coffee Prices’
Fairtrade International has raised its minimum prices for certified arabica and robusta coffee.
Announced on July 30, the rise will take effect on December 1. In a press release, Fairtrade said the rise aims to provide “stronger price security for farmers in the face of higher production costs and predictability for buyers in a volatile market.”
The new minimum price for washed arabica beans—which accounts for more than 80% of all Fairtrade-certified coffee sold—will be $2.00 per pound. This is an increase of 20 cents, or 11%, over the previous minimum price of $1.80 set in 2023. The price on naturally-processed arabica beans will increase by 20 cents, while robusta prices will go up 10 cents per pound.
Fairtrade is one of the largest voluntary certification programs within the coffee industry, and the only one specifically focused on pricing. It works with nearly 600 producer groups and more than 775,000 coffee farmers around the world. The organization said its price review process involved consulting with stakeholders from across the coffee industry, including farmers, cooperatives, roasters, and retailers.
The organization has a longstanding policy of reviewing its coffee prices every four years—the last time it raised its prices was in 2023. The organization calls its minimum price a safety net that protects farmers from C-market volatility—if the C-market falls below Fairtrade’s minimum, buyers purchasing coffee from Fairtrade-certified farmers must still meet the minimum. Since March 2024, the arabica futures price has consistently been above, and sometimes more than double, Fairtrade’s price floor. However, as recently as 2020 it was below $1 per pound.
“Coffee farmers want to earn a dignified livelihood,” Fairtrade International’s senior advisor for coffee Colleen Anunu said in the press release. “The Fairtrade pricing structure is a critical safety net for cooperatives that supports farmer resilience in the face of climate change and emerging regulatory pressures, and also supports the security of global supply chains. It is the only market pricing intervention that involves such rigor and transparency.”
Read more on Fairtrade’s new minimum prices here.
‘Newly-Discovered Ant Behavior Could Help Protect Coffee From Pests’
We love a good coffee and critters story here at Fresh Cup. Beneficial insects can be incredibly helpful in keeping coffee trees pest-free, which is important as climate change increases the incidence of harmful pests decimating coffee farms worldwide.
The berry borer is one of coffee’s most damaging pests. As their name suggests, these tiny beasties tunnel into coffee berries and set up home, which damages the berry and the seed inside. They can decimate coffee farms, and global damage from these pests amounts to more than $500 million every year.
Helpfully, many ant species prey on the beetles, with some following them into the berries to root them out. A researcher has now discovered that, once the beetles are evicted, some ants take over and use the tunnels for their own reproduction.
“In terms of pest control, this is primarily a good thing because it’s benefiting the ants in terms of their populations and fitness,” Jonathan Morris, the researcher who made the discovery, said in a press release. Not only do they get rid of the borers, but the ants can use already-damaged berries to reproduce and create more predators. “The ants gain this reproductive benefit that’s originally created by the coffee pest. And this might actually help to maintain more diverse ant communities directly on the coffee plants.”
Morris made the discovery ten years ago by accident while a graduate student at the University of Michigan, collecting berry samples as part of a different project. Borers had previously infiltrated the samples, but he was surprised to see that ants had taken over some of the berries. In 2025, he went back into the field to document the phenomenon and published his findings in the Scientific Naturalist section of the journal Ecology.
The use of beneficial insects to control pests is one of the cornerstones of sustainable coffee farming. “In agroecosystems, where natural pest control is a goal, it should be remembered that natural enemies benefit from their prey,” Morris wrote in the paper.
Read the full story on the ants vs beetles here.
‘Raise the Bar’s Level Up Returns for Another Weekend of Coffee Education This September’
Following a successful inaugural event last fall, the coffee industry pros behind the education and networking event Level Up are bringing it back for a second year.
Level Up will once again be hosted at Mill City Roasters in Minneapolis. This year’s event will follow a similar itinerary to the first edition, including workshops, lectures, and networking opportunities. New this year will be half-day intensive workshops in sensory, technical, and business skills, specifically designed for working coffee professionals.
Described as “a sleepaway camp for coffee people,” Level Up is a creation of Raise the Bar, a non-profit started last year by Rachel Apple, Ivana Chan, and Sandra Loofbourow. “We wanted to make it easier for the generation coming up behind us: affordable, playful, high-quality, low-ego education,” said Apple in a press release.
Last year’s event had 80 attendees. In a post-event survey, 100% of those surveyed reported making a professional move after attending. This included receiving a raise, finding a new role, starting a business, or finding or becoming a mentor—5% even reported accepting a new job through connections they made at the event.
Tickets for this year’s Level Up start at $650, including meals, lodging, and local transportation, with scholarship applications opening soon.
Level Up takes place September 18 through 20, 2026. Read more and buy tickets here.
More News
‘Spent Coffee Grounds as Biochar Could Treat Toxic Gas’ via Daily Coffee News
‘Coffee Generates €84.4 Billion for the EU Economy and Supports 1.5 Million Jobs, New ECF Report Finds’ via Comunicaffe
‘3,000 Gallons Of Cold Brew Recalled Due To Botulism Risk In 2 States’ via Delish
‘Dunkin’ Coffee Buckets Are Coming Back With New Car Cup Holder’ via USA Today
The Week in Coffee Unionizing
In mid-July, Starbucks launched a new set of drinks called Blended Energy Refreshers. The drinks “combine fruit-flavors, customizable caffeine levels and a smooth, frozen texture,” according to the company. (They’re basically supercharged slushies.) According to Starbucks Workers United, the blending powder used to make the drinks is causing respiratory issues for baristas.
Workers claim the powder, which is used to improve the drinks’ texture and prevent separation, can become airborne during use. As reported by International Business Times, baristas have complained of sore throats, coughing, and headaches after preparing drinks using the powder.
SBWU pointed to silica as the ingredient potentially causing issues. There are two forms of silica, only one of which is used in foods: silicon dioxide, a food-grade anti-caking agent, which is what the Starbucks powder contains. Then there’s crystalline silica, which is used in manufacturing things like glass and pottery, and in its dust form is linked to chronic lung disease and other respiratory issues. Starbucks clarified in a blog post that its product “does not contain crystalline silica and is safe for use in food.”
However, the union accused Starbucks of “dodging the issue entirely,” pointing out in a social media post that the blog doesn’t mention whether the product is safe to inhale. SBWU also says it has requested safety information on the powder, and demanded to meet with the company over the issue.
Beyond the Headlines
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