Scott /20/05

> Michael Plant > wrote:
>> Scott /19/05
>>>
>>> Free trade coffees and teas tend to be lowest common denominator types;
>>> you aren't going to see high grade specialty materials made that way.
>>
>> I'm not disagreeing with you, but re your final observatipn above,why not?
>
> Because if the grower _does_ have something special, it's probably going
> to be more profitable for him to sell it as such, rather than selling it
> as free trade. And if it _is_ sold at the free trade price, and the broker
> has any idea how good it is, _he_ will tend to sell it at a higher price.
>
> The only time this changes is if there are production quotas (cf the
> "communicating vessels" of Bordeaux wine in which high grade wines are
> sold as lesser types because an estate can only sell a certain amount at
> a particular grade). Or if the local market is really, really flooded.
> Or if someone somewhere along the chain is not checking for quality at
> all.

Sorry Scott,

I misread. I had my mind on "fair trade," which is another thing. Disregard
all my previous correspondence.
Michael