Today, 1st October, is International Coffee Day. The day we celebrate this wonderful beverage which so many nations call “Coffee”.
2020 has certainly pulled the rug out from under my feet, giving me and many others time to evaluate our lives. If you’re like me, you might have spent time looking at what’s most important to you and what you probably can’t live without.
What’s important to you?
In my case one of the things, I figured, I couldn’t live without, would be coffee.
Working within this wonderful caffeinated industry, I worried that the pandemic would make it difficult to obtain coffee and I would struggle to get some beans to keep me going. Imagine if coffee simply disappeared? Would you get through lockdown or working from home the same way?
Probably not!
We are creatures of habits and those habits make us who we are. Changing these could possibly change who we are, at least professionally. Sleepier and less focused perhaps?
Coffee drinking continues to grow
The good news is coffee did not disappear and in fact more coffee businesses appeared although some have closed their doors. The new businesses are focusing on their online stores where they can reach the people working from home and ensure they receive their coffee fix.
The ones who managed to stay open are now taking advantage of being the only ones open in a few miles’ radius.
So how can you as an individual make sure coffee survives in the future, with or without a pandemic?
The number of coffee drinkers is increasing each year and it was estimated that by 2050 there will not be enough coffee for the number of consumers. Pretty much what happened to cacao a while back.
Knowing your coffee’s story
For coffee to keep existing it isn’t just about having coffee companies around, but ensuring coffee keeps being farmed and the farmers live in conditions that allow them to keep doing the amazing job they do.
So try to find out where your coffee comes from, try to find out a farmer’s name, you would be amazed how that can change the way coffee is seen and supplied going forward. It is very easy to get a bag of green coffee without any traceability. So you don’t know what price was paid for the bag of coffee and if the supplier received a fair amount for it.
Try to know your coffee, not just coffee beans, but also the country of origin. Dig deep and ask the right questions to your barista and the coffee company you go to. By doing so you are forcing businesses to become more transparent and forcing them to give the baristas the necessary tools (training) to deliver the quality and story to every cup.
Fairtrade premium
So this International Coffee day, I am happy that every day I drink a cup of Perkee coffee I know Jeysis a school girl in Los Saltos school in Jinotega, Nicaragua is supported through the Fairtrade premium which delivers school packs every year and that a fair price is paid to her parents for each bag of coffee they deliver to SOPPEXCCA.
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