As one of the legions of people who partake of teas and coffees on a regular basis, I became curious as to how it’s grown, bought and sold. How much of an impact – positive or negative – am I making with this habit? So began my dive into the world’s most commonly used drugs. Yes, caffeine is technically a drug.
Let’s start with coffee.
The history of coffee goes back to the 15th century with evidence of coffee being enjoyed in Sufi shrines. The beans originated from Ethiopia and Yemen. [1] From there it spread quickly around the world with Brazil being the leading grower of coffee beans today. The global coffee industry as of 2023 is worth $495.50 billion! [2]
However, there are issues with the industry. Many coffee farmers live in poverty and growing practices can have negative impacts on the environment. In addition the USDA organic certification leaves a bit to be desired. And then there’s packaging. Fortunately there are ethical growers and roasters. Here is a list of several coffee companies that I’ve found, in no particular order, with many able to be purchased locally in the Floyd area:
- Red Rooster Coffee in Floyd – Fair Trade, largely organic, socially and environmentally responsible. Local!
- Jim’s Organic Coffee – World’s first all organic coffee roaster, ethically sourced, rain forest certified, B-corp, regeneratively and shade grown, supports children’s programs in source communities
- Grounds For Change – Fair Trade and organic certified, they donate 1% to environmental non-profit organizations.
- Equal Exchange – Fairly traded, small farmers, employee owned, compostable tea bags
- Peet’s – Enveritas verification, some organic, environmentally and socially responsible
Now on to tea.
There’s evidence of tea being consumed much before coffee – 3rd century A.D. Tea originated in China and at first, the tea leaves were chewed or added to soups or other dishes. Tea brewing came later. It wasn’t introduced to the West until the 16th century. There is much written on the history of tea, its culture and ceremonies. Here are just a few interesting facts: After water, tea is the most popular drink consumed in the world, equaling all others, including coffee, soft drinks, and alcohol – combined [3]. India is the world’s largest tea drinking nation but Turkey is the largest consumer, per capital and tea drinking is considered Russia’s national beverage. Tea played a part in our country’s history – the Boston Tea Party – and also contributed to China’s Opium Wars.
The tea industry suffers from some of the same issues as the coffee industry – rain forest depletion, child labor, harsh working conditions, and unfair trade practices. Here’s a list of some companies with ethical practices:
- Arbor Teas – USDA Certified-Organic, Fair Trade, Certified Teas, Compostable Packaging, Offsets Carbon Emissions
- Equal Exchange – Fairly traded, small farmers, employee owned
- Numi Tea – Organic, Fair Trade, plastic free packaging, B-Corp
- Pukka – Organic, Fair Trade, 1% for the Planet, compostable packaging and home compostable tea bags.
- Organic India – B-Corp , regenerative practices, organic, fair trade
- Choice Organics – Organic, sustainable, 100% recyclable, compostable packaging,
LEED certified facility - Mountain Rose Herbs – Organic, Fair Trade, ethically sourced
So yes, I can feel good about drinking tea and coffee with careful purchases. Fortunately these products are sold locally and online.
Some tips about packaging.
Another consideration when purchasing tea or coffee is packaging, and its impact on the landfill. Here are a few tips for reducing the amount of waste produced by your coffee or tea habit:
- Buy coffee and tea in bulk from a local supplier, food co-op, or online bulk distributor. Not only does this reduce the amount of waste, but is is often cheaper to purchase in bulk.
- Use a brewing method that reduces the need for disposable waste. For coffee, try a french press or reusable pour-over filter. For tea, use a single-cup or pot-sized strainer. Toss used loose coffee or tea into your composting bin. They are a great source of nutrients for your plants.
- If you can’t avoid disposable products for steeping, try to use an alternative that doesn’t contain plastic. Unbleached coffee filters are available at most grocery stores and online retailers. Many tea bags contain plastic, which can release microplastics into your tea. Look for bagged tea that uses plastic-free or plant-based bags.
Additional Notes
A few additional notes on Red Rooster Coffee, the local roaster: the company provides the chaff, a bi-product of roasting beans to local growers. They also have an in-house day care for staff’s children. On a personal note, I’ve been able to use their empty coffee burlap bags to wrap my young fig trees. Thank you Red Rooster!
An additional note for gardeners on tea: Yaupon holly is said to be the only native plant in North America that contains caffeine. I wonder what it tastes like?