An Inclusive Litany

7/15/02

The city of Berkeley, California, is considering a proposal forbidding the sale within city limits of any coffee that is not "Socially and/or Environmentally Correctly Cultivated." To qualify as "fairly traded," for example, importers must pay growers at least $1.26 per pound. The measure would also prohibit all but shade-grown coffee that "is planted in a shaded, forest-like setting created by a canopy of trees," to provide habitat for native songbirds. Violators of the ban would be subject to a $100 fine or six months in jail.