Starbucks says it doesn't oppose Ethiopia's patent application

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) Thursday said it has never filed an opposition to the Ethiopian government's trademark application, nor claimed ownership to any regional names used to describe the origin of its coffees.

Starbucks was responding to an article in The Guardian newspaper, citing a report by Oxfam, which said the company had blocked an attempt by Ethiopia's farmers to copyright their most famous coffee bean types, denying them potential earnings of up to GBP47 million a year.

Starbucks said that according to the National Coffee Association of America, which represents the major coffee roasters in the U.S., Ethiopia's trademark application isn't based upon sound economic advice and the proposal as it stands would hurt Ethiopian coffee farmers economically.

The company added that on October 25 it sent a letter to representatives of the Ethiopian government, offering to enter into an agreement that would support and assist the government in developing and implementing a certification program.

Starbucks also said it supports the development of robust geographic certification programs. A country can accomplish identification as the origin of certain goods through certification from trademark offices, or countries of origin can be used as part of an appellation system.

Starbucks said these systems are far more effective than registering trademarks for geographically descriptive terms, which is actually contrary to general trademark law and custom. A trademark identifies the manufacturer of a product while a certification mark informs consumers a product bearing the mark meets certain standards.

As part of the proposed Ethiopian agreement, Starbucks (and all other coffee companies) would be able to use Ethiopian regional name only to describe accurately, as Starbucks does now, the origin of their coffees. Specifically, Starbucks said it would use the regional name only in connection with coffee that meets its quality standards.

Starbucks also said it names its coffees to honor the country of origin and to demonstrate how high quality Arabica coffees are grown, saying it helps provide insight into coffee growing regions and celebrates coffee origins with coffee drinkers around the world. The company added it would continue to use regional names to educate consumers about and promote the Ethiopian regions where coffee it offers is grown.

Along with coffee industry associations, Starbucks hopes to partner with industry experts and origin representatives through the process of properly attaining and enforcing certification marks or appellation designations so that coffee farmers are able to reap the benefits of identifying their origin countries.
Source: www.marketwatch.com