Coffee is the third most consumed beverage around the world, with more than 400 billion cups consumed each year. Ever wondered what goes behind making that amount of coffee? 

 

Over the years as the demand of coffee has increased, producers have moved away from shade-grown coffee (traditional method that prioritises biodiverse landscape to build a healthy habitat for coffee plants) to more industrial farming systems of growing in the sun. 

 

Sun-grown coffee is adopted as a global capitalist system for higher production and lower prices. It can only grow in ideal temperature and excessive water requirement, fertilisers and pesticides. It is the third most sprayed crop in the world.

 

Due to it’s sensitivity to climate change, it is predicted that 50% of land that we are growing coffee on right now will not be suitable for future.

 

Increasing demand in coffee has also seen a rise in coffee shops. A major percentage of coffee’s carbon footprint is generated here: using arabica (sun grown coffee), electricity to heat, dairy usage and a huge amount of waste. 

 

Solutions as individuals?

1. Buy shade grown and fair trade certified coffee

2. Make your coffee at home 

3. Consider switching to plant-based alternatives of dairy