- Recent breakdown in communication being address;
Company will fully fix situation
- Breakdown in communication blamed for fair
trade violations
- Company accepts responsibility for fair
trade violations, will fully address
- The Nosy Looker will assist company in
internal review
- CEO Mortimer “Mort” Covington will
directly oversee review
- New blog launches to showcase relationship
with fair trade growers
Quick
quote: “I take responsibility for the chain of events that
took place leading up to the purchase of non-fair trade coffee. Rest assured,
our company is already deep into an internal investigation to see where we went
wrong and will implement the necessary corrections to make sure that this type
of mistake will never happen again.” –Mortimer
“Mort” Covington, CEO
COVINGTON,
Ky., October 21, 2015 – The highest-rated coffee brand in America
for six years running is demonstrating why Americans turn to its products
morning, noon, and night, as it rises to correct an international error related
to fair trade coffee caused by misleading third-party providers.
Covington Coffee Company, a global leader in café
innovation, reaffirmed its commitment to fair trade coffee on Wednesday. “We
pride ourselves on being good global citizens and are committed to the
well-being of our fair trade partners across the world,” said Covington Coffee
Company CEO Mortimer “Mort” Covington.
An accidental breakdown in Covington Coffee
procurement policies recently led to the revelation that some coffee acquired
by the company was not purchased in the fair trade manner, a direct violation
of Covington Coffee’s policies and principles.
“I take responsibility for the chain of events that
took place leading up to the purchase of non-fair trade coffee,” Covington
said. “Rest assured, our company is already deep into an internal investigation
to see where we went wrong and will implement the necessary corrections to make
sure that this type of mistake will never happen again.”
Mortimer "Mort" Covington
Covington Coffee Company has contracted with The Nosy
Looker, a respected consultant that will spend the next several weeks
evaluating the company’s policies and crafting a reaction plan to prevent
future errors. “The Nosy Looker will be given full access to all it needs to
help us right this unfortunate wrong so that we can continue doing what we do
best: Bringing top quality coffee to top quality Americans,” Covington said.
Covington Coffee Company is also exploring legal
options against third-party suppliers who are believed to have deliberately
misled the company. “We take our job very seriously,” Covington said.
“The only
thing you should have to worry about when pouring a cup of Covington Coffee is
that you have enough for the next day, too. We will find out how this error
occurred and we will take all necessary action to show just how committed we
are to doing the right thing and to creating a brilliant cup of coffee.”
In addition, Covington Coffee Company will begin
regularly highlighting its special relationship with small international coffee
farmers to demonstrate its commitment to fair trade. These stories can be found
at the company’s blog, www.CovingtonCoffeeCompany.blogspot.com.
“These stories will show you the human side of our
business and your favorite morning beverage,” Covington said. “We are proud of
these relationships and by following these stories on our blog, you’ll see why.
These are amazing people that we fully support and truly love to work with.”
ABOUT
COVINGTON COFFEE COMPANY: Rated the top coffee brand in
America for six straight years, Covington Coffee Company is a leading supplier
of retail coffee. Headquartered in Covington, Kentucky where it was founded in
1874, this publicly-traded company employs 3,600 people in the United States.
CONTACT:
Michael A. Monks. mmonks@covcoff.com
1-877-COVCOFF (ext. 145), 15 Coffee Avenue, Covington, KY 41011
