From Bean to Brew: Conscious Coffee Drinking
It wakes us up. It brings friends together. It’s often a first date. It’s coffee. Enjoyed both socially and solo, coffee has been with us for centuries. But how much do you really know about this pick-me-up? Where does it come from and what happens once your cuppa is finished?
Coffee Cycle
If you’re a regular coffee drinker, there’s a good chance you know which countries are renowned for producing it – like Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, and Ethiopia. What you may not have known is that coffee is derived from a fruit.
Coffee trees are festooned with red cherries and the two seeds inside are what eventually give us the beans that give us our brew. Once a seed is planted it takes four to eight weeks until you have a seedling. It then takes about three years before it starts bearing fruit and another three before it matures and produces properly. Trees grow on plantations and, as you can tell by the tropical and subtropical countries in which they grow, need good soil and rainfall.
The next stage in coffee’s life cycle is harvesting, when cherries are picked. Thereafter comes the processing, in which the husk and fruit is removed and seeds are dried by sun or machine. This is known as the dry or natural method and is how a lot of coffee is processed. There is also a wet or washed method, which involves softening the husk in water-filled tanks. The hulled, dried shells of cherries are then removed by machine or even by hand. No one said making coffee was quick or easy!
Sometimes beans are polished, removing any remaining silver skin, and then sorted by density, size, and colour. Now they’re dubbed green beans and are ready for export or local use. When coffee arrives at its destination, the beans are roasted. It can then be ground, brewed, and enjoyed, either at home or in a coffee shop, restaurant, or similar coffee haven. How your coffee is made is as diverse as the flavours and aromas which fill your home or favourite café, with methods and equipment ranging from cold brews and pour-overs to French presses and moka pots.
Coffee Concerns
However, when it comes to coffee, this life cycle is hardly the whole story. The reality is that coffee production comes with impacts both social and environmental. Coffee-producing countries retain only 10% of the wealth generated by the industry. Additionally, farmers and workers are impacted by price fluctuations, poor working conditions, and climate change.
Coffee production uses a lot of energy and water – it takes 140 litres to make one cup – while processing plants often pollute nearby waterways. Energy usage, along with the inevitable export and transport of coffee, produces greenhouse gas emissions which contribute to human-induced climate change, ultimately impacting the land needed to grow coffee. The International Center for Tropical Agriculture has warned that at least 50% of the land used to grow coffee may be unsuitable by 2050. Yet land is continuously cleared to make space for coffee plantations, increasing deforestation, contributing to climate change, and threatening biodiversity as habitat is destroyed.
This vicious cycle of coffee production and climate change can be disrupted by returning to a sustainable cycle in which coffee cultivation works in harmony with nature. Traditionally coffee was cultivated under shade canopy, working with the surrounding environment to prevent soil erosion and shelter animal life, thus supporting biodiversity. The presence of other trees also creates a natural barrier against pests, negating the need for pesticides.
However, employing more sustainable methods of production is still not the end of the story. Environmental impacts don’t stop once the brew hits the bottom of your cup or even once you’ve taken your last sip. Waste is created by drinking coffee when the remaining grounds are chucked into landfills, taking up space and emitting methane, another potent greenhouse gas. Also taking up space in landfills are takeaway cups, coffee pods, and capsules – by-products that are often non-recyclable.
Conscious Coffee
This is not to say you need to stop drinking coffee. Besides the health benefits, millions of people around the world rely upon the industry for work – which is not surprising, considering it’s the world's second-most tradable commodity after oil. But you can be more conscious about how and what you drink. To support products that support people and the planet look out for labels such as Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance.
There’s more you can do besides keeping an eye out for these labels. One of the first and easiest is purchasing a reusable cup. At Ground Sourced, Huskee cups are sold, which have a two-fold good-for-the-planet purpose. Firstly, they’re made by repurposing coffee husks, which means less waste in landfills. And, secondly, it means you can stop using takeaway cups, which mostly land up in rubbish heaps.
Huskee cups are also BPA-free. BPA (or bisphenol A) is an industrial chemical often found in plastic items, which may include coffeemakers. BPAs have been known to impact health, so ideal coffee-making items include not only BPA-free products, but also non-plastic items. Check out Ground New Farm’s copper drinking range as not only a healthier but a much better-looking alternative.
Coffee grounds also don’t need to land up in the bin. They can go into compost piles, be used to repel insects, and can even be made into a body scrub. At Ground New Farm, recycled coffee grounds are used with a DIY body scrub kit make body scrub with sustainable coconut oil, coconut sugar, and essential oils from Oil Garden. Ground New Farm also uses coffee grounds to grow mushrooms, which is done in store. If you want to try this too, simply purchase their on of their grow kits and grow your own at home.
And while you’re at home, try using coffee-making methods that use less energy and produce less waste. Make coffee with a French press instead of a coffee machine, as keeping a machine on to keep coffee warm uses energy. Try not to use pods and capsules too often or look for recyclable or reusable options. When you’re not at home and are yearning for a fresh, steaming cup rather drop the idea of takeaway, sit down, deeply inhale that rich, warm aroma, and take a breather with your favourite hot drink.
Much Love
The Groundsquad