Episode #11 - What’s behind coffee labels?
Thanks for your patience! We’re back from the honeymoon and ready to sustainably kick some butt. Amy was recently asked by a friend how to figure out if her coffee is good for the planet, and the result was a bunch of research into what various fair trade and sustainable certifications actually mean. Amy reviews Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, Bird Friendly, and Utz Kapeh. The results might surprise you.
Also, a big thanks to Ilona for the link to Fat Free Vegan.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)
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Deb C said,
July 5, 2007 @ 6:37 am
Welcome back and thanks for sharing the pictures! They are beautiful! Well you’ve certainly given me enough to think about with regards to coffee. I drink several cups of non-certified coffee because I can’t afford “certified,” but have decided to drink less coffee to pay for the extra cost. Oh, and I’m on my way to my local Starbucks to ask for coffee grounds for the garden. Great ideas.
Amy said,
July 5, 2007 @ 9:59 am
Great comment, Deb. And remember that there is more sustainable coffee out there than is actually being marketed as such. Prices are coming down, too. Yuban is pretty reasonably priced, although only has minimum 35% organic and certified beans. And I’m glad you liked the pics. It was a beautiful trip.
Amy
Sara said,
July 5, 2007 @ 2:38 pm
Congrats on your nuptials! Great review of the coffee labeling. It is confusing. We’ve even been told by coffee roasters **ahem**Peets**ahem** that the labeling is meaningless.
Rhett said,
July 5, 2007 @ 9:17 pm
Sara,
Thanks for the congratulations. We’re actually doing some research on trying to pay offsets and donations to cover the impact of our trip right now…that’s another confusing and inconclusive thing.
You mention Peet’s. Could you elaborate a little further on the statement that they made? We do have suspicions about coffee labels…for example, there are bylaws and standards printed, but how strong is the enforcement? What’s the record of keeping compliance? Have these certification boards ever gone back on their standards? These are the meat and potatoes questions we’d need a research team to answer.
JP said,
July 19, 2007 @ 11:16 am
Very informative, and truly
fascinating (there is some formatting issue with this post…).
We buy organic from some free-trade cooperatives (usually they have both organic and non-organic), but I don’t think any of them use one of those labels. The one bag I have handy (just one!!) says Mercadeco, and is coordinated between them, Intermón (part of Oxfam), Cooperacció, Unis, Cáritas, Mundo Solidario and medicus mundi. But I think this was a gift, and the ones we usually buy are through a regional cooperative.