Coffee Break

13 Ways to Make Coffee Greener

Earth Day may have been yesterday, but I’m still in a GREEN mood - which is better than blue, right? So… fresh for Thursday 13, here’s 13 ways to make coffee greener.

1. Brew up a pot of Organic coffee. Certified organic coffee is guaranteed to be grown without using harmful pesticides and nitrogen-based fertilizers. Better for the environment - better for you.
2. Drink Fair Trade Coffee. In order to be Fair Trade Certified, a coffee coop or farm has to show that they use  sustainable coffee farming methods.
3. Look for coffee importers/roasters that use the Coffee Relationship Business Model pioneered by Sustainable Coffee.
4.  Lobby your local coffee shop to use post-consumer recycled cardboard cups and recycled plastic lids instead of Styrofoam takeout cups for their coffee. If they don’t offer travel mugs for refills, ask them to do so. Styrofoam and plastic lids clog the landfills for generations.
5. Recycle your used coffee grounds in your garden. Check out this post at Green Daily for 21 ways to use coffee grounds in your garden. Don’t have enough coffee grounds? Your local Starbucks or coffee shop will usually save them for you.
6. Join the Virtual Fair Trade Coffee Break to help spread the word about Fair Trade products and sustainable coffee.
7. Brew your coffee without electricity. Yes, you can. Yes, I know I said the same thing yesterday.
8. Bring your own coffee cup when you’re buying coffee to go. Be aware, though, that some coffee and fast food chains have a policy that they won’t refill a travel mug because of cleanliness issues.
9. Buy coffee from local roasters. It’s not about supporting local businesses, even though that’s good, too. It’s about reducing your coffee’s carbon footprint by cutting out at least one long shipping trip. Some of my heroes - Small Cog Coffees delivers coffee by bicycle in Seattle; Peace Coffee makes coffee deliveries in Minnesota by bike or biodiesel van; MadCap Coffee delivers by bicycle in Grand Rapids, MI.
10. Unplug your coffee maker.  If you’re not using a programmable coffee maker, unplug it after you make your coffee. Small appliances like coffee makers, toasters and microwaves draw small amounts of electricity even when they’re not in use, but it adds up to a lot of wasted energy.
11. Learn about sustainable coffee. The more you know, the more you’ll appreciate the role that coffee plays in the environment. Check out Coffee and Conservation for info about sustainable coffee practices.
12. Try cold-brewed coffee. Skip the heat altogether and use the cold brew method to brew coffee concentrate that makes amazing coffee without a shred of bitterness. This is especially great if you’re making ICED COFFEE. I mean, why use energy to heat it up, then use more energy to cool it down again?
13. Use a thermal coffee carafe to keep your coffee hot. That warmer plate on your coffee maker uses lots of energy and makes your coffee undrinkable. As soon as it’s done brewing, pour your hot coffee into a thermal carafe, which will keep it fresh and hot for hours.

This is a Thursday 13 post. If you liked this list and like reading lists, check out MORE Thursday 13 participants!

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