Millions of Starbucks customers who reach for their favourite coffee each day may not realize the journey it traveled to get to them, or the many people who make each cup possible.

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The new Starbucks Digital Traceability tool transforms each bag of coffee beans into a digital passport, launching coffee lovers on a virtual expedition to meet farmers, roasters and baristas and to explore coffee-growing regions around the world.

“We’ve always known where our coffee comes from as part of C.A.F.E. Practices, our responsible sourcing program, but now, with this tool we have the opportunity to transparently share that information with everyone,” said Michelle Burns, senior vice president, Global Coffee, Tea and Cocoa. “Every coffee has a story to tell, and I could not be more excited for people to be more connected to the whole coffee experience, from bean to cup, and meet the many people whose hard work, time and attention makes coffee possible.”

The <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank">Starbucks Digital Traceability</a> tool works like this: Using a mobile device or laptop, go to <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank">traceability.starbucks.com</a> to scan or enter the number on the back of any bag of whole bean coffee at Starbucks stores in Canada and the U.S. The mobile web app will take you to the part of the world your coffee was grown, introduce you to some of the farmers growing coffee there, and even let you meet some of the roasters who transformed the green coffee beans into your favourite roast. (Although fun, it’s not mandatory to scan a bag of coffee in order to use the tool to get to know farmers or explore the world’s coffee-growing origins – you can visit the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank">mobile web app</a> and explore anytime.)

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Want to visit Papua New Guinea? The traceability tool will take you to this mountainous island nation off the coast of Australia where much of the coffee is wild grown on small plots next to farmers’ personal gardens. Or travel to China and meet Cai, who used to be a truck driver but wanted to change his life, so he sold his house and moved across the country to Pu’er, where he bought a one-hectare farm (about 2.5 acres).

“I’ve been on my coffee journey from then on,” Cai wrote.

Though he had no coffee-growing experience, Cai loves to learn, so he immersed himself in training and education, including taking classes through the <a href="https://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/community/farmer-support/farmer-support-centers" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Farmer Support Center</a> in Yunnan and adopted <a href="https://www.scsglobalservices.com/services/starbucks-cafe-practices" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices</a> to become a Starbucks supplier.

“I think people might be surprised to know that any farm can produce high quality coffee if farmers pursue that as their goal, even small farms like mine,” Cai wrote. “I hope that people truly enjoy the coffee. I also hope more and more people become familiar with and love Yunnan coffee.”

Developed in collaboration with <a href="https://www.conservation.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Conservation International</a>, a nonprofit committed to environmental protection, C.A.F.E. Practices launched in 2004 as a comprehensive set of social, economic, environmental and quality guidelines for how coffee should be ethically sourced.

“What I love most about this tool is how it takes coffee drinkers directly to the places where coffee is grown and to the people who grow it. This is where Conservation International and Starbucks’ mission to make coffee truly sustainable began, and where the heart of our work will always be,” said Bambi Semroc, Conservation International’s senior vice president for Sustainable Lands and Waters. “The traceability tool is more than transparency for the consumer – it’s a journey that brings coffee drinkers along with us on our efforts to support the farmers – and nature – that make coffee possible.”

Conservational International has continued to be a key partner and even helped collect critical feedback from farmers like Cai that provided insights into how Starbucks could leverage traceability to further support farmers.

Abigail Kroon, traceability manager on the Starbucks Global Coffee Team who helped develop the tool, said there are many, many more stories like Cai’s, which is why Starbucks is so excited to have a way to share them with partners and customers.

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“Growing coffee, particularly at the quality and rigor required by Starbucks responsible sourcing standards, is not easy, and it’s exciting to get to share the stories of the coffee producers who make it happen,” Kroon said. “They are a huge part of our daily cup of coffee, and with traceability we can make that connection more direct.”

The new traceability tool, developed in partnership with Microsoft, is valuable to farmers as well, who are proud of the coffee they grow but who <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/knowledge-is-valuable-coffee-journey-going-digital-for-customers-farmers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">don’t always know the final destination of their green coffee beans</a> after they harvest and sell them, she said.&nbsp;

“With this platform we also have opportunity to share more information with coffee producers about where their coffee went and what it became,” Kroon said. “For many farmers growing coffee is more than just a job, it’s their passion and their life’s work – work that is celebrated and enjoyed around the world.”

New Starbucks Traceability Tool Explores Bean-to-Cup Journey

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Starbucks Canada

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2020/new-starbucks-traceability-tool-explores-bean-to-cup-journey/

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Starbucks is making two coffee education resources available to the public for the very first time.&nbsp;

Starbucks has always known the farmers who grow its coffee and, starting today, Canadian customers can know them, too, and enroll in an academic course to build their knowledge of one of the world’s most beloved beverages. The company is launching the <a href="https://stories.starbucks.ca/en/stories/2020/new-starbucks-traceability-tool-explores-bean-to-cup-journey/" data-type="URL" data-id="https://stories.starbucks.ca/en/stories/2020/new-starbucks-traceability-tool-explores-bean-to-cup-journey/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Digital Traceability tool</a>, an online platform that lets customers follow a variety of Starbucks coffees to their origin and the journey from bean to cup, and for the first time, will make its <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.starbucksglobalacademy.com/?region=ca&amp;lang=en&amp;source=canada" target="_blank">Coffee Academy academic course</a> available for free to Canadians.

New Digital Traceability Tool

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Behind each cup of Starbucks coffee are 400,000 farmers and their communities. With Starbucks new Digital Traceability tool, customers can digitally connect to more than 200 of these farms and farmers and follow the journey of Starbucks coffee from the first 10 feet at origin to the last 10 feet in stores. In 2015, Starbucks became the largest coffee retailer to achieve <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2015/starbucks-ethical-sourcing-program/" target="_blank">99 per cent ethically sourced coffee</a>. Traceability – knowing the exact journey Starbucks coffee has taken from the farmers who cultivated it to where it was roasted – has always been a requirement of Starbucks <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.scsglobalservices.com/services/starbucks-cafe-practices" target="_blank">Coffee And Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices</a>, the company’s ethical sourcing standards.

Using the tool is simple. With a mobile device or laptop, go to&nbsp;<a href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">traceability.starbucks.com</a>&nbsp;to scan or enter the number on the back of any bag of whole bean coffee at Starbucks stores in Canada or the U.S. The mobile web app will take you to explore the growing regions where the coffee beans are sourced and roasted, and how it becomes the Starbucks coffee you know and love. (Although fun, it’s not mandatory to scan a bag of coffee in order to use the tool to get to know farmers or explore the world’s coffee-growing origins – you can visit the&nbsp;<a href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mobile web app</a>&nbsp;and explore anytime.)

Starbucks Coffee Academy

In 2019, Starbucks and Arizona State University announced the <a href="https://www.starbucksglobalacademy.com/?region=ca&amp;lang=en&amp;source=canada" data-type="URL" data-id="https://www.starbucksglobalacademy.com/?region=ca&amp;lang=en&amp;source=canada" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Coffee Academy program</a> – a comprehensive program and way for Starbucks partners (employees) to learn about coffee, building on all of the coffee education the company has developed over the last 49 years. Starbucks Coffee Academy is just one of the programs available on Starbucks Global Academy platform and includes basic, mid-level and advanced coffee courses and customers can enroll online, at no cost. Starbucks Coffee Academy offers three levels:

Level 100 – The essentials: where and how coffee grows; the importance of ethical sourcing; geography; roasting and blending; brew methods; and flavour profiles.

Level 200 – Explore what influences a coffee’s flavour, from growing and processing to roasting and blending; how Starbucks makes certain that all its coffee is purchased ethically; and the teams in place to ensure quality from farm to cup.

Level 300 – Celebrating the art and craft of coffee. Learn about what creates coffee flavours and aromas and how we perceive them. Dive deeper into the ways that coffee is brewed every day in Starbucks stores and how we ensure and maintain our utmost quality. Travel farther into the craft of latte art and share new techniques to skillfully and beautifully combine espresso and steamed milk.

Coffee and the farms and farmers who grow it will always be at the heart of Starbucks.

To learn more, please visit <a href="http://traceability.starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Digital Traceability tool</a> and <a href="https://www.starbucksglobalacademy.com/?region=ca&amp;lang=en&amp;source=canada" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Coffee Academy</a>. For detailed instructions on how to sign up for free and access Starbucks Coffee Academy courses, <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/How-to-Sign-Up-for-Starbucks-Global-Academy-Canada_English.pdf" data-type="URL" data-id="https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/How-to-Sign-Up-for-Starbucks-Global-Academy-Canada_English.pdf">click here</a>.

Starbucks is making two coffee education resources available to the public for the very first time: Starbucks Digital Traceability tool and Coffee Academy courses.

On National Coffee Day, Starbucks Wants Customers to Know Exactly Where and Who Their Coffee Comes From

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https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2020/national-coffee-day-starbucks-traceability-coffee-academy/

coffee tracing

New Starbucks Traceability Tool Explores Bean-to-Cup Journey

On National Coffee Day, Starbucks Wants Customers to Know Exactly Where and Who Their Coffee Comes From