SHADE-GROWN COFFEE
What's a Birder to Do?
An article in the November-December 1999 Minnesota Birding indicated that "Your simple morning cup of coffee has ceased to be simple. It has moved from basic regular or decaf to ecological and economic nuances which give an entirely new flavor to the pot."
How true!
Here are some things birders can do to clarify the coffee concerns:
- Learn about the issues: shade-coffee vs. sun-coffee, certification, organic, fair-traded, sustainable. Becoming an educated consumer is the first priority. Most consumers-and that includes birders-will make responsible decisions when they are informed.
- Raise the shade-grown coffee issue among your local birding friends and organizations, whether at a bird club meeting, IMBD, or a birding festival.
- Seek out and buy shade-grown coffee for home and work. If your local retailers and specialty stores do not carry Song Bird Coffee or another brand of shade-grown coffee, ask that they do.
- Ask for shade-grown coffee when you are at restaurants and espresso stands.
- Support organizations that work on these important coffee issues.
- Start a coffee campaign network in your area to reach stores and the media about the importance of shade-grown, songbird-safe coffee.
- Join the coffee-hot-line e-mail discussion group run by the ECO-O.K and the Rainforest Alliance. To subscribe, send a blank message to: coffee-hot-line-subscribe@igc.topica.com
Some Coffee-related Resources
Here are some key coffee-oriented organizations and web addresses. Most of these deal with shade-coffee issues, but some overlap into organic and fair-trade coffee concerns.
Atlanta Audubon Society
Chapter of National Audubon actively promoting shade-grown coffee. http://www.atlantaaudubon.org/pages/coffeeshirt.htm
Coffee Contact
Independent web resource on shade coffee, also interested in organic and fair-trade. http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/1290/
Conservation International
Research and conservation advocate organization. http://www.conservation.org/coffee/the_program.htm
Consumer's Choice Council
Association of more than 50 environmental, corporate, and human rights groups. http://www.consumerscouncil.org
Equal Exchange
Important importer and vendor of fair trade coffees, with a distinctive logo.
http://www.equalexchange.com
National Coffee Association
Trade association whose consumer-oriented content can be found at http://www.ncausa.org/Consumer/consumer.htm
Organic Crop Improvement Association
Organic certification organization. http://www.ocia.org
Organic Trade Association
Umbrella organization for the organic industry. http://www.ota.com
Quality Assurance International
Organic certification organization. http://www.qai-inc.com
Rainforest Alliance
Research and activist organization. Co-manages the ECO-O.K. branding program. They also run a coffee-hot-line e-mail discussion group. http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/programs/cap
Seattle Audubon Society
Chapter of National Audubon and sponsor of the Northwest Shade Coffee Campaign. http://www.seattleaudubon.org/shadecoffee/
Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center
Research organization which has developed a set of bird-compatible coffee farming criteria. See their Coffee Corner. http://www.si.edu/smbc/coffee.htm
Songbird Foundation
Organization raising awareness of coffee issue related to bird habitat. http://www.songbird.org
Specialty Coffee Association of America
Trade association which has endorsed sustainable coffee in its mission statement. http://www.scaa.com
Sustainable Harvest Coffee Co.
Importer and distributor. http://www.sustainableharvest.com
Thanksgiving Coffee Co.
Vendor of Song Bird Coffee, in association with the ABA. Uses its own points system to guide its buying and marketing strategies. Shade-grown coffee is awarded points on a sliding scale, as well as coffee that is fair-traded and organically-grown. http://www.songbirdcoffee.com
TransFair USA
Monitoring group for fair trade businesses. http://www.transfairusa.org
|
