WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Starbucks faces a lawsuit in Washington, D.C., alleging it can't call its coffee "ethically sourced" because it comes from farms that use child labor.
Starbucks Corporation is facing a lawsuit filed Jan. 10 by the National Consumers League (NCL) in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The NCL alleges that Starbucks has been misleading consumers with claims of "100% ethical coffee sourcing" and "100% ethically sourced tea."
The plaintiff argues that Starbucks sources its coffee beans and tea leaves from cooperatives and farms known for severe human rights and labor abuses, including child labor, forced labor, sexual harassment, and assault.
The complaint states that despite being aware of these issues, Starbucks continues to brand itself as a company committed to fundamental human rights. The corporation prominently displays its commitment to ethical sourcing on its website, social media platforms, and product packaging, the suit says.
Governmental investigators and journalists have allegedly found worker exploitation on farms supplying to Starbucks or certified by Starbucks as "ethical." For instance, Brazil's labor prosecutor issued a complaint against Cooxupé cooperative, Starbucks' largest Brazilian supplier, citing abusive working conditions similar to slavery.
Furthermore, undercover BBC reporters exposed gender-based violence at a Kenyan tea plantation supplying to Starbucks, the suit notes.
The suit is brought under D.C.'s Consumer Protection Procedures Act. NFL is represented by Daniel Rosenthal and Charlotte Schwartz of James & Hoffman, as well as lawyers at Altshuler Berzon.