Labour Lens

Di Bella Coffee

Lacks transparency

Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources

Brisbane coffee roaster selling beans to cafes and home buyers.

There's no proof the people who grow its coffee earn more than the legal minimum, which in Brazil is below a living wage.

Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Di Bella Coffee? Send a right of reply.

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Why it's graded Lacks transparency

  • Not met: Meets 1 of 5 Good requirements.
  • Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and unaudited production in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
  • It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
  • Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.

How grades are decided


Good requirements 1 of 5

  • Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
  • Not met: Respects worker rights48% of its coffee is grown in countries such as Colombia and Honduras, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
  • Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
  • Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
  • Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list

Red flags 2

  • Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
  • Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain

Stars it would earn as Good

None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars

Estimates for its products

Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Di Bella Coffee's evidence and, where it has product lines, that line's countries. They're estimates: we don't know which factory made any single item.

  • A product carrying the Fairtrade mark: Good

Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.

Where its coffee is grown

These are Retail Food Group's coffee origins across all its brands; Di Bella Coffee doesn't say where its own coffee is grown. The rest is shown as where coffee is usually grown.

Where its coffee is grown, share by country, and conditions there
CountryShareWorker rightsLegal minimum wageForced labour risk
Brazil38%Systematic violationsBelow a living wageModerate
Honduras18%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
Colombia18%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
Nicaragua11%No guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate
Ethiopia2%Systematic violationsFar below a living wageModerate
India1%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageHigh
VietnamUsual for the industryunder 1%Systematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
IndonesiaUsual for the industryunder 1%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
PeruUsual for the industryunder 1%Systematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
UgandaUsual for the industryunder 1%Systematic violationsFar below a living wageModerate
GuatemalaUsual for the industryunder 1%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
Papua New Guinea12%We don't have labour ratings for this country yet.

Evidence

What we found

  • Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: coffee is on the US Department of Labor child or forced labour list for over a dozen countries, and farm-gate prices often fall below a living income. (partly offset by certification or direct sourcing)
  • Modern slavery statement

Research notes Retail Food Group's FY25 statement gives green coffee origins as Brazil 37%, Honduras 18%, Colombia 18%, Papua New Guinea 12%, Nicaragua 11%, Ethiopia 2% and India 1%, and rates child labour risk high in all of them. 95% of coffee roasted for Australia was certified, mainly Rainforest Alliance, which sets no minimum price. No farm or trader list, audit findings or living wage commitment are published.

What independent sources say

SourceResultDetails
Australian Modern Slavery RegisterListedCovered by Retail Food Group's annual modern slavery statement; FY25 statement lists green coffee origins and says 95% of domestic green coffee was certified. View
US Department of Labor goods listsListedCoffee from Brazil is listed for child and forced labour, and coffee from Colombia, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico and Kenya for child labour. View

Sources and actions

Sources 6

Show all 6 sources
  1. US DOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor · search the archive · Coffee from Brazil listed for child and forced labour; Colombia and others for child labour
  2. Retail Food Group acquires Di Bella coffee brand (Australian Food News) · search the archive · Retail Food Group bought Di Bella Coffee
  3. Di Bella Coffee Roastery (Must Do Brisbane) · search the archive · Roastery cafe and retail store in Bowen Hills, Brisbane selling beans

Published by Di Bella Coffee or its owner

  1. Retail Food Group Modern Slavery Statement FY25 · search the archive · FY25 green coffee origins: Brazil 37.1%, Honduras 18.1%, Colombia 17.6%, PNG 11.7%, Nicaragua 10.8%, Ethiopia 2%, India 1.3%; 95% certified
  2. Retail Food Group Modern Slavery Statement FY24 · search the archive · Over 97% of FY24 domestic green coffee certified, with Rainforest Alliance a key part
  3. Retail Food Group Modern Slavery Statement FY23 · search the archive · 96.1% of domestic green coffee Rainforest Alliance certified; Di Bella among Australia's largest certified coffee buyers

Company details

Headquarters
Australia
Last researched
2 November 2026
Cite this page
Labour Lens, "Is Di Bella Coffee ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/di-bella, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method
Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means

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Something missing or wrong?

Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Di Bella Coffee.