Coffee, More Than Just a Luxurious Taste

Coffee, More Than Just a Luxurious Taste.

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I enjoy a good cup of filter coffee or cappuccino either in the morning or after a days work.

I recently went to a business that imports coffee beans from a few African countries and I was made aware of some startling information.

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Holding raw coffee beans (above)

Did you know the average coffee bean tree produces an annual yield of only 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of roasted coffee. It takes about 4,000 hand picked green coffee beans to make a pound of coffee.
Harvesting coffee beans is very labor intensive, as beans need to be individually picked and peeled. The reason why coffee is sourced from the poorest regions in the world is because labor would be too expensive anywhere else.

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The roasted coffee beans (above)

A coffee bean is a seed from the coffee plant, and is the source of the coffee we drink. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit often referred to as a cherry. Even though they are seeds, they are referred to as beans because they resemble true beans.

So when you enjoy your next cup of coffee, be aware that the harvesters go to great lengths with minimum wage to produce the beverage you enjoy.

There is an option that makes it fair both to the business owner, consumer and to the harvester. Buy and support Fairtrade coffee. It is coffee that has been sourced by ethical and Fairtrade organizations. You will find Fairtrade products in shops, cafes, restaurants and supermarkets.

Photographs by : dianesart