Pubs 'should consider Fairtrade coffee'

Pubs could take a hint from high street coffee shops and fast food restaurants, many of which have introduced rainforest-friendly products and promotions, according to a sales and marketing director.

Writing for the Morning Advertiser, Tom Fender commented that McDonald's and Starbucks base many of their campaigns on food-sourcing ethics, highlighting locally-sourced products and Rainforest Alliance-certified coffee.

He pointed out that pubs could adopt a similar approach, rather than basing promotions solely on meal-deals and price.

Mr Fender also suggested that pubs may wish to consider setting up a coffee-to-go offer - or if one is already in place, to promote it with a buy-ten-get-one-free offer or something similar.

This suggestion, he said is based on OnTrack statistics indicating that 37 per cent of pub customers think a good cup of coffee is an incentive to use a pub, but only 32 per cent of licensees say they have a coffee machine.

According to Fairtrade figures published on February 22nd, demand for the sustainable goods increased across the UK during 2009.

It highlighted Sainsbury's move to convert all its coffee and tea to Fairtrade-certified, as well as all of Starbucks' espresso-based coffee, as two highlights of the past year.

Written by Kimberley Homer

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