Mélange Sustainable Travel + Lifestyle Winter 2022 | Page 62

Sustaining the coffee industry

by Lisa Guthrie Deabill

It is estimated that more than one billion people drink coffee every day worldwide . And the demand for coffee is expected to triple by 2050 . Because of that , more and more companies and coffee producers are working to ensure the viability of the industry through their business and environmental practices .

That is the idea behind the Sustainable Coffee Challenge . It was conceived by Starbucks and Conservation International and was launched at the Paris Climate meetings in 2015 .

“ It ’ s time to think about coffee beyond our daily cup . Coffee holds the promise of driving sustainable agriculture and farmer prosperity across commodity crops and engaging hundreds of millions of people around the globe in sustainable living ,” said Dr . M . Sanjayan , Conservation International CEO .

Some goals of the movement include the use of sustainable agriculture to increase coffee supply in an environmentally responsible way and rewarding coffee producers who invest in sustainable farming practices . The Sustainable Coffee Challenge started with 18 partners and has grown to 170 worldwide including McDonald ’ s , Whole Foods , Walmart and Target .

Here ’ s what we can do to help the environment while enjoying a cup of java :

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