Sustainable Coffee Certifications: Organic & Fairtrade Beans
Updated: Nov 9, 2020
In the UK, Fairtrade coffee accounts for nearly 25% of total coffee sales – and the appetite for fairly traded coffee is growing. Never has it been more important for us to focus on, and take responsibility for, our relationship with the environment.
When you choose Fairtrade certified coffee, you are helping to create trading partnerships that are based on dialogue, transparency and respect, protecting the local environment and prohibiting child labour or forced labour. Not only can farmers build a better quality of life for their families and communities, but they can also invest in growing better quality beans too.
Environmental protection is a key element to certification, requiring smallholder farmers and larger producers to comply with its standards, which include training and advice on switching to environmentally friendly practices, guiding producers in adapting to climate change and mitigating their impact. Enabling and assisting farmers to adopt organic practices and create a sustainable future is a priority for Fairtrade.
Buying certified organic coffee beans, means its plantation is using shade-grown farming methods, reducing deforestation caused by the coffee industry. Also the coffee is grown without use of synthetic fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides assuring when the heavy rainfall comes there will be no chemicals to wash into rivers and streams, causing pollution in all surrounding areas, and contributing to the conservation of soil and water resources.
By consuming organic coffee, health risks are also dramatically decreased. Free of pesticides and artificial fertilisers, it reduces the risk of harmful chemical ingestion and boosts the immune system with high levels of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, guarding against disease.
Fairtrade and organic dual certified coffee is a fantastic example that buying and drinking a high quality product not only tastes great, but also contributes to protecting your health and the future for the people and place where it comes from.