We used to have a direct link to this info on Shade Grown coffee by Geoff Watts of Intelligentsia, but few people ever visited it so we took it down awhile back.
However, a commenter to a post on Blog Lebo suggested eco-caring folks who weren't buying shade grown coffee may not being doing all they can for the environment. We hear it sometimes ourselves: "Where's all your shade grown coffee?" "Well, I'll only buy shade-grown, bird-friendly direct traded coffee."
Nice sentiments. But, as with all dogma, there is more to the story. In this case, much, much, much more.
Just one short excerpt:
This is why we believe it is extremely important to avoid dogma and consider the full picture holistically when thinking about any one of these issues. A consumer might fixate on shade and decide never to buy Rwandan coffee since there is very little shade there. How do you think a Rwandan farmer might feel about that? The whole country is deforested and has been for generations. Nearly every inch of arable land is being put into service to try to feed the people in what is one of the most densely populated and impoverished countries in all of Africa. Just over ten years removed from a horrifying genocide, the country is rebuilding and trying to position itself to move forward, and an impressive amount of international donor money has poured into the country to help build infrastructure and revitalize the coffee sector. Is it right of us to tell these farmers we will not support their efforts because they don’t have shade, when it is far beyond their means and the most pressing concern is basic survival?
The entire article is a long read, but well worth it.
Thanks Chris for the heads up on the Blog-Lebo post.
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