The ‘Third Wave’ of Coffee Could Save the Earth
High-quality coffee, bought "based on its origins, its process, its methods," may be a bit "hipster" and more expensive than the average Starbucks goop, but according to writer Chérmelle Edwards in The Guardian, it may be far better for the environment.
Giving a bit of thought to where your morning joe comes from and how it's produced may be more important than you realize. Shutterstock
High-quality coffee, bought “based on its origins, its process, its methods,” may be a bit “hipster” and more expensive than the average Starbucks goop, but according to writer Chérmelle Edwards in The Guardian, it may be far better for the environment.
The Guardian:
For coffee nerds like me, who fear that venture capitalists and coffee missionaries will succeed in converting cup-of-Joe drinkers into religious followers of single-origin coffees and ruin what’s “special” about specialty coffee, it’s time to stop worrying. As first-world consumers, coffee producers and farmers begin to understand the value of the taste of a really great cup of coffee, and the intentional pursuit of that will change what commodity coffee is — its definition, its value and its dominance. We’ll still have specialty, but we’ll gain specialty-as-commodity, too.
I’ve heard all the complaints about how the Starbucksification of coffee didn’t keep artisanal coffee special — but that’s because it wasn’t about artisanal coffee at all. The so-called second wave of coffee expansion was about getting consumers to come to a space to enjoy the ritual of coffee. … In the third wave, however, we buy coffee based on its origins, its process, its methods — and its evangelists are out to get specific about what separates it from being a standard commodity.
Traditionally, mass production has meant less of all of this. As “the big four” in specialty coffee companies — Stumptown, Blue Bottle, Intelligentsia, Counter Culture — attract millions in investments and investor interest (Counter Culture, for instance, remains independent), expanding the number of people who care about what is special, it means we’ll have to grapple with how to expand quality and sustainability while minimizing the environmental impacts of mass, specialty coffee productions.
But mass can mean more in a good way.
—Posted by Natasha Hakimi Zapata
WAIT, BEFORE YOU GO…If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
Global warming threatens to substantially reduce the amount of land suitable for coffee-growing by 2050, but bees could fly to the rescue.
The indigenous resistance group will sell colorfully named "100 percent Zapatista coffee, cultivated in Zapatista lands by Zapatista hands" to raise funds for a cause sure to get under the president's thin skin.
Chocolate, wine, coffee -- these are just some of the foods we'll lose due to climate change; an American expat living in France explains why "Americans are suckers who have themselves to blame for crappy broadband"; meanwhile, a town in Alaska may become the first place in the U.S. to tax churches. These discoveries and more after the jump.
People "give up" coffee the way they do cigarettes and red meat, but numerous studies tell us that unlike those other vices, America's liquid breakfast of choice has many health benefits.
There's concern in the international markets over what's happening to coffee production, under attack by drought, disease and rising temperatures.
Nowadays, the members of the 1 percent are the only ones getting richer and they're hiring servants to keep them comfy; there are a few things you should be aware about with regard to your caffeine intake; meanwhile, familiar weather patterns have gone extinct. These discoveries and more after the jump.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.