Starbucks Corporation — Ethics Grade C

Starbucks Corporation receives an overall ethics grade of C (46/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Food & Beverage. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 25
• privacy: 65
• consumer: 60
• environment: 40
• humanRights: 55

Documented incidents (2)

• Aggressive union-busting campaign (high, 2023) — NLRB filed 100+ complaints against Starbucks for illegally firing, threatening, and surveilling union organizers across 400+ stores.
• Single-use cup waste (medium, 2022) — Generates 8.2 billion paper cups annually. Missed its own 2015 target to make cups recyclable or reusable.

Documented good deeds

• Community stores program — Opened 100+ community stores in underserved neighborhoods with local hiring and mentorship programs.
• College tuition coverage — Covers 100% of tuition for employees through Arizona State University partnership. 80,000+ employees enrolled.

Ethical alternatives

• Counter Culture Coffee — Direct trade, transparent pricing to farmers. Carbon-neutral roasting. B Corp certified.