Standards & schemes
Starbucks (verified by SCS Global)
In brief
C.A.F.E. Practices is Starbucks' proprietary sourcing verification programme for coffee, launched in 2004 and verified by SCS Global Services under its Verifier & Inspector Operations Manual. Farms and mills are scored against the C.A.F.E. Practices Scorecard (V3.4) across economic, social and environmental indicators, with zero-tolerance criteria that must be met for any score to count; the programme covers the vast majority of Starbucks' coffee purchases. As a company-run programme it has no multi-stakeholder governance and no on-product consumer label — its claims appear in Starbucks' own communications. Its verification is third-party, but the standard itself is set by the buyer. Scores translate into supplier status levels that determine Starbucks purchasing, and the programme's third-party verification model — with SCS-trained inspectors — predates most commodity certification schemes. Its scorecard criteria are public, unusual transparency for a proprietary programme. Alignment with these principles is a stated position, not a certification; it does not by itself demonstrate compliance or outcomes.
Conditional relationships
A relationship does not mean that the standard proves or validates every use of a claim.
Recognition & legal context
No reviewed law references are published.
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