Along with taste, another important fact for me when choosing coffee is if it’s earth friendly? Are you concerned about the state of our environment and want a simple, affordable way to make a difference? Have you tried organic coffee?
Organic coffee is grown with little as impact on the environment as possible. The farmers do this by using the most environmentally safe methods and materials available. A key factor is that they are not grown with artificial fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides.
To be certified in the United States, it must pass three tests.
- It has to be grown on a land that hasn’t had any synthetic pesticides or other harmful substances for at least three years.
- There has to be a space between the organic crops that separates them from any regular crops.
- The farmers have to have plans to control pests naturally, as well as rotate the crops to prevent erosion and overuse of the natural nutrients in the ground.
Organic coffee is often grown in the shade, which requires less forests to be cut down. The result is that the natural habitat is preserved, which is always a good thing, but the benefits don’t stop there.
The trees prevent soil erosion and their leaves provide natural fertilizer when they fall to the ground around the coffee plants. Along with the trees, comes birds. Their droppings provide fertilizer, but they also control pests like insects from damaging the coffee plants.
It’s grown in over forty countries, but mainly imported from Peru, Ethiopia and Mexico.
So the next time that you’re at the grocery store or your favorite coffee shop, look for a coffee with the organic label. Not only are they great tasting, but you’ll be doing your part to help our environment.
Places to buy organic coffee:
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Photo by Charmaine Tham
{ 11 comments }
Sorry to be a troll…because I 95% agree, but having an organic certification doesn’t always mean it’s “best practice.” A natural canopy that is applying for certification can take 3-7 years to get it; a clearcut can be certified in less than 1 year. So guess what’s happening in some of the poorest coffee producing nations?
You’re not being a troll at all. I appreciate the information, I definitely didn’t know that all so thanks for leaving the comment.
Yes, I have tried organic, a friend brought organic coffee for me from the province. It was great and very aromatic.
Btw, would you mind exchanging links with me. I have added you to my blogroll. Thanks in advance.
Have a great weekend.
Thanks for stopping by, I added your link.
You’d think that labels like organic, fair trade, bird-friendly, and whatever else automatically mean “good stuff”, but they don’t. Stephen makes a good observation, and I’ve had feedback that fair trade isn’t so fair either. I’m all for reducing pesticides in both the earth and my body, but the choices aren’t always as obvious as we might like.
Debbie
http://www.organic-food-and-drink.com
I think it all comes to looking at more than just the label and really knowing the story of where the coffee comes from. Of course, that’s often easier said than done.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8224325
that’s a study about pesticides in coffee.
if the farmers can grow these crops without
chemcials, and we can afford to pay for their
work and yields, why add unknown factory
juices to a cup of coffee and change the
way the beans taste?
i always try to pick the organic beans.
All Nice Points In These Articles, Honeslty I Can’t Say That Organic Coffee Tastes Any Different Than Regular Coffee, Because My Primary Source Of Coffees Are Ethiopian Which By Default Most Are Organic Even If Not Certified. I Would Love To Do A Taste Test Bean For Bean To See If You Can Taste The Difference.To Be A True Test The Bean Of Origin Has To Be The Same, Because We Know All Beans Have Different Characteristics. I’m Sure It’s Not Like Tasting The Differnce Between Reg Cafe N Decaf. I’m A Farmer N I Use Fertilizers On Some Of My Plants, Some Natural Fertilizers As Well, Only Thing I Seem To See Is The Difference In How Much It Yields. Still Would Love To Do A Side By Side Tasting |_|B
.-= BaristaOnDutY´s last blog ..BODY Unite~ A Pan Roasters Journey 2 Spread Awareness Halted Not Stopped ~ =-.
I think that would be a good taste test!
I’ll Do Some Research On Locating Some, U Can As Well, We’ll Report Our Finding Whomever Get The Info 1st! Remember They Have To Be The Same Bean
Just Processed Differently, Honestly I Think We Will Be Hard Pressed Unless We Find A Farm That Is Switching From Organic One Year To Go Back To Reg Fertilizer Or Vice Versa, But Yes It Be Interesting! |_|B
.-= BaristaOnDutY´s last blog ..BODY Unite~ A Pan Roasters Journey 2 Spread Awareness Halted Not Stopped ~ =-.
I’ve been keeping an eye out, didn’t see any on my web travels this weekend, but I’ll keep looking.
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