8 Ways to Make Your Coffee Habit Eco-Friendly

Coffee is probably the most popular drink in the world. However, all of the world’s coffee drinkers are impacting the environment in many ways. When you consider all of the home and office coffee makers, cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, vending machines, and other places, there’s a lot of coffee being served every hour worldwide.

With all of these cups of coffee come millions of plastic and paper products: stirrers, lids, cups, napkins, etc., are thrown away every day. Also, gallons and gallons of water are required to grow the coffee beans, harvest them, and brew the coffee. Fuel is needed for aeroplanes to bring coffee to countries worldwide from the handful of countries that grow coffee as an export product. Your coffee can travel as many as 10,000 miles to reach you. Deforestation is another consideration, as countries are felling trees to plant more and more coffee plants to meet demand.

So do you have to give up coffee? You may want to do that, but you could also at least do what you can to lessen the environmental impact of your favourite brew.

1. Drink less coffee

You may not want to do this, but drinking less coffee is definitely one way to lessen its environmental impact. We all think we NEED that caffeine hit but maybe it could be what we really long for is a decent cuppa…not always easy to make at home unless you splash out on expensive coffee makers, but what about trying a gooseneck kettle instead? Not heard of them? You aren’t alone – learn more about gooseneck kettles.

2. Buy local where possible

You can cut down on the air miles spent to get your coffee to you by buying local or at least buying from countries that are closest to you.

You don’t have to buy that unique blend of Kopi Luwak (the luxury coffee that supposedly gets its flavour when the bean has passed through the colon of the Luwak tree mammal).

There are other speciality coffees you can find closer to your doorstep.

3. Buy organic or fairtrade

The great thing about organic coffee is that the growers respect the flora and fauna around the coffee plants. Besides, organic coffee is grown without chemicals, which can only benefit you and the earth. Factories that produce the chemicals used on coffee and other plants are usually spilling traces of those same chemicals into the environment.

By buying fairtrade, you ensure that coffee farmers get a fair deal that includes fair wages. Fairtrade coffee producers also have environmental standards to go by to receive organic certification.

4. Avoid corporate coffee giants

Try to frequent small, local businesses rather than the enormous corporate coffee chains. Some of these giant companies are responsible for deforestation to supply the masses with their coffee while using low-cost methods to source their beans to maximize their profits.

5. Use your own travel cup or mug

If you invest in a really good travel cup or mug, you’ll want to use it over and over again. Avoid Styrofoam cups and plastic containers, and use wooden stirrers where possible.

6. Use environmentally-friendly filters

You can find reusable filters that will give you an excellent cup of coffee that won’t (literally) cost the earth. Look for hemp or other reusable filters, or if you want single-use filters, choose biodegradable ones (that haven’t been bleached.)

Making your coffee at home can bring you an excellent cup of brew, and the process of making home-brewed coffee can be relaxing. Try your own Uno Casa kettle or pour-over system for enjoying fresh coffee in your home for maximum flavour.

7. Buy your coffee in bulk

Buy your coffee in large quantities, where possible, to save on air miles and use less packaging. If you buy at a supermarket, you can at least buy the largest bag possible.

Even better, bring your own container to your local coffee retailer, who will probably be happy to fill it for you.

If you are worried about your coffee’s freshness, ground coffee should stay fresh in a cool, dark place for a while. Otherwise, you can grind your beans, which is highly satisfying and gives even better flavour to your brew.

8. Put the coffee grounds to use

One of the advantages of making coffee at home is that you can put the coffee grounds to good use. If you have an existing compost heap, add coffee grounds to the fruit peels, eggshells, and other food you put there. You can even put the coffee grounds directly into your garden since the nitrogen that they contain is an excellent fertilizer.

Another great use for coffee grounds is to keep cats from using your garden for their litter box (cats don’t like the smell of coffee.) Sprinkling coffee grounds throughout your garden will not only discourage felines, but you’ll be keeping away ants (the nitrogen burns their legs, so they’ll stay away.)