[Seac] Re: New Moon Cafe: a values led business?

[Steven Barney <barnes99@uwosh.edu>]

SEAC List Members:

Last Friday, I copied to this list a customer suggestion which I sent to the New Moon Cafe. I certainly did not mean to defame or harass anybody, but some explanation is obviously in order. I posted it here thinking that others might want to join me in encouraging the NM to go further in incorporating it's ethical values into its product sourcing; in particular, to buy its animal products from socially responsible sources (as a long time animal rights activist <http://www.uwosh.edu/alag/>, this is one of my areas of specialty). I replied to Aaron's expressed concern that he would loose business by doing so, because, as he put it, "this is Oshkosh;" that is, Aaron was of the opinion that his Oshkosh customers would not tolerate somewhat higher prices for the sake of their ethical values and socially responsible business practices (think of Ben & Jerry's or Judy Wicks’ White Dog Cafe http://www.whitedog.com). We simply have a difference of opinion there, an intellectual disagr
eement. I merely meant to encourage him to reconsider that belief, and provided some persuasive argument to support a different opinion. The letter also included some references and tips in the form of some alternative sources that might enable him to put his business purchases more in line with his personal values. Aaron and I seem to be largely in agreement on ethical values (we are both vegetarians), and he says he would do this sort of thing if he felt the business could survive with higher prices, but he does not have enough confidence in his customer base to take that plunge just yet. That’s where we come into the picture.

If you, like me, are willing to pay somewhat higher prices to float a more values-led New Moon Café, you might want to let Aaron know about it, in a very polite and supportive manner, and give him a little encouragement. If you have any helpful tips, such as locally available sources of humane and sustainable animal products, please send them along too.

Now, if I communicated any false statements that injure the reputation of or deter others from associating with Aaron or the New Moon Cafe, please correct them, and my further apologies will be forthcoming. I did not mean to do that, and I certainly did not mean to harass anybody. I hope that Aaron does not take customer suggestions and well intentioned tips as harassment.


Sincerely,
Steve Barney
Oshkosh, WI

PS: For your information, included below are all the previous letters on this subject that I have sent to Aaron, from first to last.

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Date: Thu, 20 May 2004 17:11:46 -0500
To: Aaron Baer <aaron@newmooncafe.com>
From: Steve Barney <barnes99@uwosh.edu>
Subject: "Certified Humane" restaurant

Aaron Baer, Owner/Manager, New Moon Cafe

Since Certified Humane Raised & Handled products are better for animals and better for you, please help make them more convenient for your  neighbors and customers to buy by carrying Certified Humane Raised & Handled animal products.

You could become only the second restaurant in the US to get the "Certified Humane" designation from the recently formed "Humane Farm Animal Care" organization <http://www.certifiedhumane.org/>. Personally, I found out about this whole project from a news article <http://www.certifiedhumane.org/inthenews.html> which was carried on the front page of the Oshkosh Northwestern last weekend. The article is about a Virginia restaurant which has become the first in the US to get this recognition. If is plausible that the New Moon could get similar media attention for becoming the 2nd such restaurant in the US. For more information, please call Humane Farm Animal Care, the nonprofit organization that oversees the program, at (703) 435-3883 and visit their website.


Discriminating consumer,
Steve Barney
Oshkosh, WI 

Did you know there is a web site where, if you click on a button, the advertisers there will donate 2 1/2 cups of food to feed hungry people in places where there is a lot of starvation? See: <http://www.thehungersite.com>. 

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Date: Mon, 24 May 2004 10:33:08 -0500
To: aaron <aaron@www.newmooncafe.com>
From: Steve Barney <barnes99@uwosh.edu>
Subject: Re: "Certified Humane" restaurant

Aaron, Cafe Clique:

If you thought that was an interesting idea, you might be interested in a woman named Judy Wicks <http://www.sbnphiladelphia.org/Phila/viewPage.cfm?pageId=118>. She is a leader in Business Alliance for Local Living Economies <http://livingeconomies.org> and owner of the White Dog Café, Philadelphia <http://www.whitedog.com/>, a million dollar/year cafe which tries to buy local and humanely raised food products. She spoke in the UWO Earth Charter Summit last October <http://www.uwosh.edu/earthcharter/summit2003.php> about "how changing the purchasing habits of businesses and individuals can boost local producers of food and other products and build healthy local living economies." She tries to help other cafes and businesses do likewise. She also leads the White Dog Cafe Foundation which gives grants to certain good works. I don't know, but she might be able to help you. Bob Poeschl may be able to tell you more about that and have more ideas (local Green farmers, etc.). Here 
is a quote from the menu page of the White Dog Cafe:

Our Ingredients
The White Dog Cafe's support of sustainable agriculture is driven by both taste and food politics. Seasonal, local, and organically grown ingredients taste better. Humane and sustainable agriculture produces safe, wholesome food in a manner that is ecologically sound, economically viable, equitable, humane, and provides a healthy and safe environment for the present and future generations.
http://www.whitedog.com/menus.html


Steve

[Aaron's reply deleted.]

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