Beware of Fillers in Your Coffee

Beware of Fillers in Your

CoffeeBy www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The coffee market is under stress from several factors.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

One is the drought in Brazil, the country that produces forty percent of the coffee in the world.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The other is the rising value of the US dollar versus virtually all other currencies.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The drought in Brazil is a natural phenomenon that leaves many coffee farmers in the country with smaller crops.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The rise of the dollar has to do with the strength of the US economy and the weakness of those economies based on raw material exports.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Not only do coffee farmers in Brazil have less coffee to sell but the value of the local currency, the real, is falling.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

If the farmer cannot find an international buyer he is taking a thirty percent loss as compared to a year ago.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The real traded 2.18 to the dollar a year ago and now it takes 2.76 realesto make a dollar.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

But what does this have to do with fillers in your coffee?

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Anything to Fill the Bag

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Remember our article about Coffee Please, No Dirt?

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

We quoted the Washington Post which warned about fillers in coffee, dirt, corn, twigs, soybeans, etc.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Cream and sugar may not be the only additives in your morning cup of coffee.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Tough growing conditions and rising demand are leading some coffee producers to mix in wheat, soybean, brown sugar, rye, barley, acai seeds, corn, twigs and even dirt.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The point of all this is to purchase healthy organic coffee that comes from a supply chain that is closely monitored and free of the many impurities that come with regular coffee, not to mention dirt, corn, twigs, etc.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Healthy Organic Coffee

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

How do you know if your coffee is organic? Here are three options:

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

USDA Organic Coffee

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

According to the USDA, the following applies to USDA organic coffee as well as to all organic food production.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

“… Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Before a product can be labeled ‘organic,’ a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure thefarmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.”

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

UTZ Certified Coffee

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

UTZ Certified stands for sustainable farming and better opportunities for farmers, their families and our planet.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The UTZ program enables farmers to learn better farming methods, improve working conditions and take better care of their children and the environment.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Through the UTZ-program farmers grow better crops, generate more income and create better opportunities while safeguarding the environment and securing the earth’s natural resources.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Rainforest Alliance Certified Coffee

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

An alternative to organic coffee certification is for a grower to be Rainforest Alliance certified.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The Rainforest Alliance is a non-governmental organization that works to conserve biodiversity.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

It does so for agricultural products by influencing consumers to buy what is good for the environment and good for small farmers.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Rainforest Alliance certified means that the coffee that you buy was produced using good land use practices.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Rainforest Alliance certified coffee is part of a broader sustainable agriculture program of tropical crops, including coffee, bananas, cocoa, oranges, cut flowers, ferns, and tea.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Certified coffee farms meet a strict set of environmental standards that include preservation of the ecosystem and reduction in use of synthetic chemicals of all sorts.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

In addition, strict health and safety requirements are part of getting Rainforest Alliance certified.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

The Rainforest Alliance works with the Sustainable Agriculture Network which is a group that includes conservation organizations in nine countries in Latin America.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

These organizations work to increase and maintain sustainable agricultural practices.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

On the other end of the coffee spectrum Rainforest Alliance works to convince consumers and to buy Rainforest certified products and works to have businesses buy from certified farmers and sell to the public.

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

http://buyorganiccoffee.org/1295/beware-of-fillers-in-your-coffee/

Look for any of these seals on the label and you will get good organic coffee without the fillers.