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The City of Berkeley May Limit its Brewed Coffee to
"SEC-C Coffee"
(pronounced "sexy coffee" and stands for "Socially
and/or Environmentally Consciously Cultivated Coffee")
Some Berkeley citizens wanted to make it a law that people selling
brewed coffee in Berkeley can only sell "fair-trade," organic, or
"shade-grown" coffee. They gathered over 3,000 signatures and have put
the issue on the November 2002 ballot as an initiative. Supporters
advocated that shops use these coffees because of their social,
environmental and health benefits.
What is SEC-C Coffee? See Related Coffee Links and Frequently Asked Questions for more information.
SEC-C Coffee in the News:
Rick Young, the author of the SEC-C Coffee law, has appeared on a number of national news and debate programs to discuss the initiative. See the NEWS PAGE for details of these programs as well as archived press coverage of the coffee initiative.
The election was held on Nov. 5, 2002. The measure received
approximately 30% of the votes cast and thus did not pass.
----Check Official Results (click and then scroll towards the bottom of
that page).
----Back
to the same old grind? Mandating a politically correct cup of coffee
fails in Berkeley, The San Francisco Chronicle, November 6, 2002
New! Coffee Laws in 2003 and beyond:
Follow-up Efforts
The Positive Effects of Measure O
Analysis: Why Measure O Did Not Pass
