29 Unbelievable Facts You Didn’t Know About Coffee

A LOT OF FARMERS DEPEND ON COFFEE

Around 25 million farmers around the world depend on growing coffee for their livelihoods. The vast majority of these are in relatively poor countries. So how you choose to buy your coffee, who you buy from, and rewarding quality with an appropriate price can have a significant, tangible impact.

 

HOW MUCH WATER DOES IT TAKE TO MAKE A CUP OF COFFEE?

It’s a complex answer but essentially far more than a coffee cup. It typically takes around 100 liters of water (22 gallons) to grow and process each cup of coffee. Most coffee is processed using the ‘wet’ method to get the bean from the cherry, which requires vast amounts of water. Opt for ‘dry’ washed or ‘natural’ processed coffee to reduce your footprint.

 

COFFEE CUP WASTE IS A HOT TOPIC

There is growing awareness worldwide surrounding the issue of what happens to your takeaway coffee cup when it’s discarded. In the UK, 2.5 billion cups are thrown away each year. With less than 1% of takeaway cups recycled owing to a pesky plastic lining inside, the rest are incinerated or go to landfill. In the US, it’s estimated that 25 billion styrofoam cups are thrown away each year. Opt instead for reusable cups or thermos flasks.

 

WHAT IS THE POINT OF SHADE-GROWN COFFEE?

Shade-grown coffee refers to coffee beans that have grown in the shade, typically beneath the canopy of banana trees. The coffee grows more slowly, which may improve the flavor, but more importantly means less water is needed for irrigation, fewer herbicides and chemicals are used, soil erosion is reduced and the trees give wildlife a place to call home.

 

THERE’S CAFFEINE IN DECAFFEINATED COFFEE

In the US, decaffeinated coffee legally means 97% of the original caffeine has been removed or, put another way, up to 3% of the original caffeine still remains. While that means what’s left is a fairly nominal amount, it means there’s still potentially some caffeine in your decaff.