Human population is expected to soar to 9 Billion by the year 2050. A scant forty years away. If we don’t take care of the earth now, the natural resources that are being stretched at this moment will be harder than ever to find.

Organic coffee, tea and cocoa are trying to make a difference. CJ says if you buy responsibly from the co-op organizations, make sure the products are fairly traded or fair trade, you will be helping conserve what we already have. This in turn will save resources for the future generations.

However, Coffee Joe’s research shows that by-products such as coffee pulp have become a huge problem. Just a tiny amount of coffee pulp is used by farmers for compost and the remainder piles up or becomes a pollutant when the rains wash it into local rivers. Ignored by the global watchdogs, if it can’t be seen, it can’t be there.

coffee pulp piling up (ZERI)

On the positive side, new innovative plans are in the works. Growing mushrooms with coffee pulp is a new idea for poverty stricken third world coffee countries, especially for the women who usually do all the work, and receive little in return. In addition, solutions are being researched by ZERI (Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives Foundation).

“ZERI discovered that not only do mushroom spores thrive in coffee pulp, the spores also convert the pulp into a livestock feed rich in fibre. In a cycle that reuses local organic material, the manure produced by well-fed livestock can then be used as a rich fertilizer for coffee plants or food crops. This closed-loop, sustainable process developed by ZERI won the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s 2009 “Sustainability Award.”

women, coffee pulp (ZERI)

In some countries, East Africa or Tanzania for instance, coffee farming does not bring in much money, and most are too poor to realize a profit. Mushrooms will bring a little more security to their lives, their communities and their families.

CJ wants you to take the time to be responsible, include organics into your lives, even if it’s only one product at a time such as organic coffee. If you are going to drink coffee anyway, drink organic.

Someone will thank you.

kitchen waste    =    landfill      

Coffee Joe intones the mantra of reduce, reuse, and recycle. As a responsible coffee company, we promote the use of our compostable bags, reuse the hemp bags the green beans come in, and because the other odds and ends of packaging are only a viable option for recycling if they are bundled together in large lots, we have it picked up monthly. We are doing our part as much as possible.

The global steps to sustaining and managing waste products should be as follows:

1. Prevention – Packaging only for loss or damage, not for aesthetic reasons.
2. Minimization – Reduce packaging: lower costs, less space, less in a landfill.
3. Reuse – Always should be a priority for everyone to consider.
4. Recycling – Old into new, esp. packages of steel, aluminium, paper or plastic.
5. Energy recovery—Waste-to-energy makes use of heat from packaging pieces.
6. Disposal—burning and allowing marked zones for special waste in a landfill.

CJ loves numbered lists, they organize and make everything logical. Take these points to heart. If packaging is here to stay, let’s make sure it stays in the right place. You can read our guest blog at www.myzerowaste.com. An international site, it is a check valve for what is going on in the world of waste.

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Coffee Joe Says: “We are all dietetic sinners; only a small percent of what we eat nourishes us; the balance goes to waste and loss of energy.” ~William Osler~

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CJ found that the phenomenon of excess packaging started in the early nineties, and is only recently being recognized as an environmental hazard. Biodegradable packaging, in particular, has become one of the most effective marketing tools. The continuing trend will be aimed at the use of flexible film, a unique, high performance product, made from renewable resources.

In the business of coffee, there is primary packaging – what the retailers see – and then there is secondary packaging – the crates, bags and pallets – that bring the raw material for processing to our roaster. Realizing the scope of the problem, Pistol&BURNES started with one pound bags of coffee. They are one of the few totally compostable bags on the coffee market. We researched very carefully and decided to go with NatureFlex.

It uses ‘waste to energy’, supporting the re-routeing of organic wastes from landfill.

In addition, coffee companies such as ours have a recycling routine to take away all excess plastics, bins, pallet wrap, foils and film, paper, wrapping, and secondary packaging. Green bean hemp bags are picked up and reused by suppliers of plumbing and machinery parts – they use them to store and carry large items instead of cardboard.

The landfill must be a final option – reduce waste first, then reuse whenever possible, and as a last resort, recycle.

Organic coffee – starting from the shade-grown forest protecting the early plants, to the warm sunshine promoting growth, to the high altitudes fostering slow maturity – is a product of ying and yang. Each condition helps the other. At the end of each relationship, you have an organic product worthy of both your wallet and your conscience. Now, because balance has been maintained, the organic cycle can begin all over again.

CJ discovered that the earth on an organic coffee farm is made up of decomposed, natural materials, which along with the rotation of other crops, composting, and the elimination of harmful chemicals results in a healthier soil. Ying and Yang. This in turn prevents water pollution, offers a secure home for migratory birds, and a beverage you can drink without dire consequences.

Balance is what it’s all about. Back to basics – if the coffee farmer looks after the soil, it will repay him indefinitely. If he doesn’t, it won’t repay him at all.

Coffee Joe says look at this organic coffee bean – at the split in the middle. Ying and Yang. Balance.

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Coffee Joe Says:  With enough coffee, anything is possible.

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1)      Refuse to buy goods with surplus packaging.

2)       Re-use as long as possible; i.e. clothing, household goods.

3)       Barter or trade with neighbours, friends, or family to reduce clutter.

4)       Recycle garden matter; leaves, grass cuttings and prunings.

5)       Compost leftovers; vegetable ends, fruit peels, crushed egg shells.

6)       Compost tea leaves/bags (no tags, staples or strings), coffee grounds.

7)       Walk – don’t drive unless you have to.

8)       Turn the heat down in winter, wear an extra sweater.

9)       Use a fan instead of air conditioning.

10)   Buy local, fairly traded or organic.

11)   Check out solar energy.

12)   Grow your own garden.

13)   Eat at home.

14)   Less pollution if you avoid take-out or fast food.

CJ has a quote for the environment, climate change and carbon footprints:

“Why don’t we pay more attention to who the farmers are? We would never be as careless choosing an auto mechanic or babysitter as we are about who grows our food. All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today.”

So, Coffee Joe wants to know – What is a carbon footprint?

According to the website,  it is the degree to which our everyday activities, even those as minor as drinking tea or coffee, can cause greenhouse gases to be produced, leading to climate change. Other activities would include our utilities, transportation, recreation, clothing, food, vacations – just your normal day to day living.

There are actually two parts to your carbon footprint.

1.   Primary: direct emissions of carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels.

2.  Secondary: indirect carbon dioxide emissions starting with the      manufactured products we buy and use, right through to those products which end up in the landfill.

Here is another handy website for calculating your family’s carbon footprint. Give it a try and find out what you can do as a family. If each family does their part, the environment will improve more and more each year.

CJ has a list for you:

These are five Do’s for used coffee grounds:

1)      Do put into your compost.

2)      Do layer into your garden.

3)      Do spread around the top surface of inside plant containers.

4)      Do mix with eggshells for outdoor plant pest-resistance.

5)      Do check out cafes and coffee houses for used grounds.

Now, here are five Don’ts for used coffee grounds:

1)      Don’t throw down the drain.

2)      Don’t throw into the garbage disposal.

3)      Don’t throw into your local landfill.

4)      Don’t accumulate with the intention of using later.

5)      Don’t blame anyone or anything else for not recycling.

And…Coffee Joe says no, food waste and coffee grounds will not break down usefully in the landfill even though they are biodegradable. There are just too many other toxins in there resulting in contamination. Take these little baby steps towards a sustainable, healthy earth.

It all starts with you.

CJ wondered what upcycling meant. According to Wikipedia, it was first used by Reiner Pilz in 1994. In 2002, William McDonough and Michael Braungart explained it further in their book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things.

“It means the prevention of wasting potentially useful materials by making use of existing ones. This reduces the consumption of new raw materials when creating new products. Reducing the use of new raw materials can result in a reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and even greenhouse gas emissions.”

On her blog, Lyanda says she was a little sceptical at first, but gave it a chance. The chickens loved it, the coop smelled wonderful, the chaff clumped easily for removal and best of all, the coffee chaff was free!

If you’re worried about using any kind of coffee chaff, not just organic, don’t. Due to the high temperatures in the roasting process being so intense, any potential chemicals would have been burned away.

So, give your coffee roasting company a call. Your chickens will love you for it, and so will your landfill.

CHAFF    =   EGGS   =  NO LANDFILL

CJ asks what is virtual water?  This concept came about in the early 1990s and was first defined by Professor J.A. Allan.

“It’s the water embedded in commodities. Producing goods and services requires water; the water used to produce agricultural or industrial products is called the virtual water of the product.”

To the everyday person like Coffee Joe, this refers to all the hidden water involved to produce either a manufactured item or an agricultural one. It starts first from the seeding to marketing, to transportation, to export – more water usage than we know or think about.

To make an average cup of coffee, it takes approximately 140 litres of water from first growth to in the cup. It stands to reason we need to look at water differently. There are lots of ways to recycle that old coffee left in the bottom of the pot, or even the inch or so in getting cold your cup.

CJ will investigate and let you know the various organic means to reduce the coffee water waste, recycle the chaff, reuse coffee grounds and even unroasted beans…

What do you do with your coffee water?