There is this coffee farm in my area and their coffee is really good. The farmers don't only grow the crop, but also distribute the coffee themselves and even have their own café chain. They have both helped our local economy and have given lots of jobs to those who needed it. On the plus side, I get to indulge on their iced coffee when I have the budget.
My family has grown coffee for over 150 years we have done shade grown coffee financially some years it doesn't make sense you need to diversify your production. But there's some pride in the type of coffee you grow. One funny thing about the shade grown coffee it's that the coffee takes notes from the fruits they grow close by and viceversa like an orange or tangerines will be really bitter. What people should know that you buy a Starbucks coffee for $5 but producers from that probably will get less than $0.50 and workers a fraction of that that's why you should try to make your own coffee instead of buying Starbucks or getting a Keurig or Lavazza Blue. Thanks for reading if you make it this far. English its not my native language so sorry for the grammar
Hi! English is not my mother tongue as well. But it would be great if you try to answer some of my questions. Do you sell your coffee by yourself or directly to coffeeshops? Or maybe it can be found in supermarkets under some brand name? As a final consumer in Germany, how can I recognize coffee from farms like yours? Should it be labelled as FairTrade or organic etc?
By far not the worst grammar I have seen. Some natives are far worse. You get your point across, which is something you cannot always say of natives, so you are doing pretty well
My aunt in El Salvador grows coffee in fincas (shade grown, basically), where there are other fruit trees and plants growing alongside the coffee. First, the coffee is picked, then it is slightly roasted, then the shell is pulled off by hand (a very labor intensive task, as the shell does not come off easily), then it is roasted again and put into big sacks that only sell for $2 each. I did not believe her at first when she told me that was how much they paid, but considering how cheap a cup of coffee is about anywhere, it was quite infuriating to know that she and many other coffee farmers are not given enough to sustain themselves.
Meep City Al most the same happens to most of the produce. My uncle has orange fields he just sells a big box of oranges for about 0.05 US dollars. And once I’ve met a guy who inherited an advocado farm. He says he rathers to give them away, because he is frustrated about how little he can makes for a kilo of advocados, which is also about 0.05
C grade coffee is at .90 per pound. Consumers need to find local coffee roasters who publish transparency reports that tell buyers what they pay for green coffee. Love coffees from El Salvador. Try Aida B. Finca Kilimanjaro or some of the Bourbon varieties.
$2/lb FOB isn’t a terrible price. Especially;considering it would be exported in a lot approx 40k pounds. By the time it reaches the roaster, that coffee incurred additional shipping, customs, and finance charges and would end up being ~$3.10/lb to the roaster. The roaster would then roast the coffee and have a ~15% weight loss, which is accounted for in the final per pound roasted cost along with any packaging they use.
S D. Coffee and Chocolate are suppose to be lost in the climate crisis. All of our foods will see a reduction in variety. It’s going to be more and more basic and simple - if we keep our course.
ChicagoTurtle1 I don’t think they have to be out completely but reduced by like 90%. Its not a necessity, and bring a bunch of health issues with over use which is rampant. It should have a proper price tag for the luxury items they are and i think its okay to consume a few times a year during celebrations n stuff but not multiple times a day.
Quite high. Takes a great deal of grain to make it. Plus the cost of shipping and alcohol related illnesses and accidents. We even tried banning it once. Though that didn’t end well
@@DangNguyen-jw9fl No earth SHOULD be cooling according to trends in climate. But it isn't because of us humans. Our impact switched the earth from a cooling trend toward a warming trend.
I saw the video pop up and I thought "damn, I will have to face this". It took me until today to watch it. Guess it's time to start looking into better produced coffee now. Thanks, OCC :(:
@@puddingball Same, I've seen this one pop up in my recommendations so many times and just never had the guts to watch it. I'm glad i did though, as from now on I'll try to both lower my consumption and in exchange buy fairly produced coffee :)
As an active coffee consumer, your video shed light on a very important topic that we try to avoid. There needs to be a demand for change if we wanna continue at this rate of consumption!
If you like coffee, look for coffee at local shops and specialty coffee shops, they typically try to instill practices that are better both for farmers and for the crop. When they are based in relationship they usually treat the plants better and the people working on the farms. The specialty stores usually can tell you directly what farm it comes from and have probably met the farmers.
The rate of consumption is the primary force that drive the modern farming. Old ways of farming can not meet the modern demand. So it is either reduce the demand or increase production. If for some instance these modern techniques stoped but the demand stays the same, the price will skyrocket. Coffee will become luxury items.
What about climate change and its effects on coffee production? I've read somewhere that by 2050 coffee on daily basis will be available only for a limited group of people (because of its price).
@James uber i wouldnt agree with it. I mean the climate has always been changing, but since industrial revolution the process has been faster due to all the ghg emissions. And I didnt mean to blame the coffee industry on that, if that's what you understood from my comment. Just wanted to start a discussion about the impacts of climate change on coffee production
I just bought my first bag of single origin, more ethically priced/grown coffee and came back to this video. I’m aware it’s a social privilege to afford what this product is, and merely consuming isn’t a solution to a problem. As good as the coffee is, the knowledge you share is more important. Thank you for making this video.
buy from coffee roasters who are publicly open about transparency in their supply chain - this often means they are committed to paying the farmer a living wage either through fair trade certification or a direct partnership with the farm. It doesn't solve the entire issue but it ensures financial support to small farmers rather than the industrialized coffee industry which is driving the C-price so low farmers can't get by.
Your channel is amazing! Thanks for the great content and such important work that you are doing. I’m from Brazil and I want to congratulate you for emphasizing the responsibility of North countries in changing their consumption habits and pressing the government to change policies.
You're a steward/saint/gem! Thanks for these videos. Could you consider doing a video on the true cost of a grass lawn and the benefits of rewilding spaces, please!
Quit coffee years ago to get rid of my caffeine dependence. After having watched the video, I'm glad I did. Though it would be interesting to try out shade-grown coffee to taste the difference.
It depends on the coffee, but typically shade grown can range anywhere from nutty and chocolatey to fruity and sweet. It depends on the region and altitude it grows in as well! Most specialty coffee shops should have this type of coffee available as it is more of a craft and the roasteries attached to the shops will know where the beans come from and will probably know the family of the farmers who produce the green coffee beans. Buy locally. They usually have discounts placed as well if you bring your own cup in. A lot of the mission of the specialty coffee industry is to be kinder to the coffee farmers and provide a fair trade economy where everyone in the system is given a fair wage and better quality product that is more craft than industry. It might be a bit more expensive but the pay off is greater if coffee is something that people enjoy.
What a great video! Thank you for this! As an avid coffee drinker for more than a decade, I can honestly say that this video helps me become a more empowered consumer. Thanks, Charlie!
I absolutely love your videos! And I completely agree with your conclusions. We just got so used to buy everything so cheap without questioning the true cost of things. However, it seems that it's slowly happening a cultural shifting where we are more and more aware of our own purchases.
“If you’re exhausted of hearing my voice” Bold of you to assume that I wouldn’t listen to a 1-hour podcast narrated by you. Stop that self-deprecating attitude, OCC
"if more farmers adopt tree intercropping systems like those used on coffee plantations, they could potentially sequester 17.2 gigatons of CO2 over the next thirty years." So I'm a carbon management student and I love this channel - but constructively criticising - what does "more farmers" mean? that needs to be made precise as does this mean 1 farmer doing shadegrown? or 100,000 coffee farmers utilising shadegrown? Keep up the good work! Love the videos and are great inspiration for my work.
Good old agroforestry. There's a lot of potential carbon sequestration to be found there, not just with coffee. Definitely something worth looking into/researching.
Hay can I get your perspective on an idea? Would a food forest/permaculture in people's front and back yards be able to work like mini carbon sinks and possibly help offset the rainfall loss that the shrinkage of the Amazon is going to create?
I don’t think the study he refers to is using number of farmers as basis to derive the 17.2 giga tonnes number. It’s more a comparison of how much area could potentially be converted to agroforestry systems from agroindustrial systems. But the more important question here is not about how much area could be turned into agroforestry, but how this is done and if this would benefit the famers (and especially about the willingness of big agroindustrial companies to adopt the traditional system). I basically comes down to the consumer to demand environmental and socially sustainable coffee and their willingness to pay for it... Sorry for the rand though...
@@KeeperOfKeys22 There are many types of carbon sinks - we can use wet peatlands for instance to sequester carbon dioxide or forestry to do the same. Mini-scale carbon sinks would be a wonderful idea, if rolled out on a mass scale. From my understanding, you can't offset rainfall loss by rolling out mini-scale carbon sinks like you suggested because climate is incredibly complex and the climate envelop (what we call conditions - including temperature and rainfall variations) would be largely very different in the US than it is in the Amazon rainforest. However, I believe small-scale permaculture plantations like you suggested are excellent ways to get people to think more locally about their climate and produce mutual benefit for the people in your community and the planet as a whole. This would make the supply-chain for food a whole lot greener as transportation, treatment of food through chemicals can be controlled to the way you like it. Plus, permaculture is incredibly relevant as it creates ecosystems of mutual benefit for the plants and can also increase biodiversity in ways that monoculture doesn't even stand a chance. These are just my two cents, many thanks for your question! P.S. my lecturer is creating a carbon sink in the Scotland by planting around about 50,000 trees on his farm. Absolutely fantastic initative by one man - he's a true inspiration. His name is Dave Reay if you want a quick google :)
Can you make episode on? 1. Tea 🍵 Green Tea / Black Tea 2. USA Government Organic Food, Should I buy? Why not? How can I make better decisions? 3. Organic Items alternative options Foods, hygiene, make up 4. Vegan Items alternative options Foods, hygiene, make up 5. USA Spanish Language Should I teach my child? How can I learn accessible? Who speak this? 6. USA Mandarin Chinese Language Should I teach my child? How can I learn accessible? Who speak this? 7. USA Japanese Language Should I teach my child? How can I learn accessible? Who speak this?
This video is fascinating and not just in regards to coffee. It shows with an example how our understanding of progress as linear is flawed. Industrialisation in this case didn't just straightup make everything better in every way for everyone. It's a matter of prioritization and tradeoffs. It focused on things people cared for at the time and neglected other factors people werent aware of/didnt care about as much.
What I really love about this channel is that you are not afraid of cirtisizing the capitalist system and its effect on ecology and climate! Really good and informative video, I had no idea about the difference of sun-gown and shade-grown and will defnitely look for the latter now!
'The majority world' - I love this term. It is not only factually true, but it flips the perspective of how we understand 'who matters'. Yes, the Global North is rich in money and military might, but the natural resources that power it, are from literally where most of humanity resides.
My family has been growing coffee for over 3 generations under shade conditions. Infact India is one of the only countries where majority of coffee growers are still growing under shade of forest trees.
Thunder #1 biggest energy consumption is actually boiling the water to make the coffee. People boil water for lots of things...spaghetti, tea, potatoes, rice, beans. Best to invent something that boils water as efficiently as possible.
Great video. A point I would like to add that was not covered in the video was the emissions from transportation. Coffee is shipped all over the world, to every super market and cafe. If people really cared about the environment they would drink less coffee overall. The same is true for bananas. On a personal note I think people need to take more personal responsibility and do less 'finger point' at other countries and corporations; the only behavior you can change is your own.
I simultaneously agree and disagree with you about our own responsibility. I disagree with it because while you and I think dearly about our planet, most big coorporations and governments do not in the slightest. People with lots of money and power came to be into that position because of the highly destructive methods that got us into that mess. They have the power and means to make an end to this and our individual impact on this is relatively small. Also, with every consumption that we make as a consumer there is at least one link in chain of production that is highly destructive for the workers or the environment. Completely ethical consumption is close to impossible without producing your means of living by entirely yourself. And even when you're doing that you are removing yourself from society, effectively minimizing the impact that you can have on the world. And that's a situation where we as individuals would act perfectly. I myself know that I'm doing plenty of things that could make change, even though I'm trying my hardest. When I'm thirsty and forgot my water bottle, I will sometimes buy plastic water bottles. When I want to go on vacation, I could either go with the more environmentally friendly train, but a rental car is literally 30% of the cost (and I don't make a lot of money). And I am one of the people in my circle who cares the most about the environment. Still individual people are imperfect. But I also agree with you, because we as individuals can decide to swim against the stream we're currently in. Because others will realise that there is a better way for the planet when seeing us, it will be easier to follow in our footsteps. The more people swim against the stream, the more we can pressure the people currently in power to better their ways. We can vote for people who care for the environment, stop giving our money (and power) to the wrong people and influence others to do the same. It's not about absolving ourselves for the bad things we are doing now, it's about influencing ohers and changing the current of the stream. It's also exactly about taking away the arguments that big coorperations use. Oil companies like Shell make commercials where they say "how can you yourself make a change and drive less?" while they are the ones making trillions of dollars from fossil fuels. If we can say "we already drive minimally, so stop drilling for oil and invest all of your money in renewable energy" they will have to obey (if we put the right people in governments). So I think our individual choices do certainly matter, but more in the way of a single vote for a better society and a future world. Eventually people with real power should have to make the big changes.
Agroforestry farming, known as Talun huma, has been practiced for centuries in Indonesia, typical South East Asian cultivation method, not just for coffee but also for other crops. When coffee was introduced to Indonesia by the colonial Dutch in 1696, following a pattern seen in other colonial regions within the coffee belt coffee became a mass-produced, globally traded commodity, largely orchestrated by European colonial powers. European companies established themselves in coffee-producing countries, importing slaves from Africa to work on plantations in the Caribbean, Asia, and the Americas. During this period, the main beneficiaries of coffee sales were the European colonial powers and companies. However, the farmers in coffee-producing regions, like Indonesia, did not receive fair benefits and were even burdened with taxes. Eduard Douwes Dekker described this historical injustice in his famous book "Max Havelaar," also known as "Multatuli." Despite this dark history, coffee has become the second most consumed beverage globally, which is truly remarkable. A video on this topic could hold impactful meaning for coffee consumers worldwide, encouraging awareness and appreciation for the complex history behind this beloved beverage and the impact that it would bear from climate change and continuously increasing market demand.
I'd really love if big chains like Starbucks, McDonalds and Tim Horton's etc would acknowledge this problem. Everything in moderation is an idea that doesn't seem to exist in the Global North. I drink tea, but I know that it truly isn't much better. Great video!
Sustainably Savvy You can also buy from single microlots or farms.Aside from the uniform grain size all those coffees taste horrible. Douse anything in milk and sugar then everything tastes splendid. Coffee is like wine.
i don't get it. These videos seem like they deserve millions of views and they do because they're as informative and insightful as those of ted ed or any other educational videos, also made with great care and efforts. Anw all i wish is u get more recognition man, u've been incredible
That was really interesting. Would you like to do a documentary on Nespresso? It would be really nice to be able to see if they, as they say, reuse de plastic capsules and which kinf of coffee they offer (do they offer shade grown coffee??) Thank you :)
Great informative video. I agree that the welfare of the environment and the farmers should be prioritized above all else, and I actually believe that this scenario will happen in the near future given all the awareness videos like yours provide. My only concern as a fellow coffee lover -- once industrialized coffee growing methods are controlled, this would reduce the coffee supply globally thus increasing bean costs per pound/gram; ultimately increasing the effective price of our cup of joe :(
Usually if you go to a specialty coffee store, they will have "shade grown" written on the bag. Most grocery stores except for whole foods wont have them (and whole foods has it because it sources locally). Ultimately try and buy locally because they do relationship coffee and most will be shade grown.
Wonderful information! I had forgotten about this. I'm going to stop buying corporate produced coffee now and only ensure I buy shade-grown from ethical coffee farms. It's worth it to pay more so these workers can have a decent life and to protect the environment.
You mention purchasing single source, shade-grown coffee but are there specific "calls to actions" relative to your second point of re-orientating the global economy like supporting specific organizations doing work in this area? Thanks!
Support local coffee shops that are in the "specialty" realm. It sounds "snooty" but usually you can get the more ethically grown coffee that support the farmers and workers. They also are typically shade grown and fair trade. Though sometimes those labels are expensive to put onto the bags themselves. In terms of being a conscious coffee consumer, specialty and local will be the better way to go because if the coffee shop is connected to a roastery typically they can tell you directly where the beans came (farm and all) from and what processes they use to bring the coffee to the buyers.
For all the aforesaid reasons people should prefer Colombian coffee, which is grown traditionally with great agroforestry practices and benefits small to mid-scale farmers. Juan Valdez is an option, but there are many more, offering cheaper and better grain. +1: Robusta coffee is very bitter, but not aromatic; Arabica (the one we grow) is quite the opposite, sweet to fruity taste and an incredible aroma. Unfortunately, large-scale investors have bought harvests in advance to speculate with the prices and keep paying producers the minimum possible, regardless of positive changes in value. I know it is a mixed blessing but farmers still feel that once again, a rich gringo is getting the lion's share of the deal.
You can always buy properly sourced speaciality coffee from your local roaster. To these saying they drink tea instead - do you think that that doesn't have similar environmental risks? If you buy coffee that is produced in more traditionaly setup way, the roaster buys it directly from farmer and pays more than commodity coffee price you can drink coffee without really thinking you have done something bad. I see comments on this video like the issue is black and white - it isn't and it never will be. Buy quality produce, it doesn't have to have stupid organic label - it needs to be traceble, well paid for and produced in sustainable way. But this type of coffee doesnt cost 15USD per kg....
One question I didn't notice addressed here, reducing mechanisation means employing more manual labour, which pushes the price up for the producers (even if they are paying extremely low wages that's still a cost increase) what is the proposed solution to motivate producers to make this switch? Other than encourage people in richer countries to buy coffee that cost's many times more than they are used to. How do we stop this from pushing the burden onto the poorest and least powerful people in the world?
I have been looking for coffee that is shade-grown for a while now but I cannot find information about it anywhere. There is information about it beeing ecological and fairtrade but no more than that. Also I don't want to buy my coffee online do to higher environmental transportations cost.
When the conversation about coffee comes up. Im always surprised that the single use cups are not mentioned! They contribute slighificqntly further to the unsustainable nature of coffee and reusable coffee cups should be encouraged.
I consider my behaviors and purchases pretty environmentally friendly (Definitely not perfect), but giving up coffee is so incredibly hard. I value the Earth’s well being over my own desires, but DAMN it’s so hard giving up this drink... it’s so good. Great video as usual!
I feel similar about tea. (Though its more wondering how sustainable it is rather than knowing its not) Usually i buy seasonal and regional as much as possible (and avoid vegetables that are not) I drink teas daily and it's one of the few things i make an exception for there. Though i do try to only go for organic one.
Zoology This video is shading companies like nestlé and the generic brands. Other than colombia and ethiopia none of the countries produce coffee that are high enough quality for specialty coffee. It is a very narrow region in Brazil for ex. The care that goes into coffee is similar to that of wine. You need to take care of the land to produce a good bean. Duromina coffee for example was what brought them wealth. Local for me means Hawai`i as it's too cold in North America for coffee. California coffees are starting to exist but it's so so so expensive like 35 a cup expensive.
I noticed Americans sometimes pronounce "s" as "sh" exmplified by the way he pronounces "s(h)tream", "des(h)truction", "cons(h)truction", "s(h)trikes" etc. Is this pronounciation from a particular region ?
Hey I like your channel and videos. And I support your messages a lot. but for the point of clarity I think if you use statistics you should show them in a way that is not at all misleading. I am not accusing you of misinformation, because what you say is, for what I say, true. But when you say we can reduce "17,2 gigatons of co2 over 30 years" and then that the US produced "6,5 gigatons of co2" in 2016 that might be a bit confusing for some viewers. I don't want to undermine your arguments because it does not change a thing about it, but I do believe you understand what I am trying to say. So anyway keep up the good work!
Alya ‘Aathira Jasmine- It’s a big upselling point for producers so if it’s shade-grown they will list it on the bag. There are three labels to pay attention to with coffee: shade-grown, fairtrade and organic if you are looking to buy more ethical and ecologically-friendly coffee. The coffee industry has strong ties to unethical producers that use child slave-labor, so fair trade is important as they have strict standards for their employees ensuring that there are age and labor restrictions. The best coffee that I have found so far is from a company called Growers Alliance Coffee which is organic, fairtrade and shade-grown. I’m sure you can find others online if that interests you. Good luck! 👍🏻✨
What kind of coffee do you usually buy/drink?
NONE - saving so much waste (even with keepcups) but especially, money.
Our Changing Climate i haven’t drank coffee in a few years, but i will never touch a cup of coffee even after i go to my tomb
I used to drink a lot of coffee... switched to black tea (specifically chai) 5 yrs ago!
I do drink 3 cups of tea per day though.
There is this coffee farm in my area and their coffee is really good. The farmers don't only grow the crop, but also distribute the coffee themselves and even have their own café chain. They have both helped our local economy and have given lots of jobs to those who needed it.
On the plus side, I get to indulge on their iced coffee when I have the budget.
I buy only organic and fair trade coffee since I drink it every now and then... I hope I have made a good environmental decision..
My family has grown coffee for over 150 years we have done shade grown coffee financially some years it doesn't make sense you need to diversify your production. But there's some pride in the type of coffee you grow. One funny thing about the shade grown coffee it's that the coffee takes notes from the fruits they grow close by and viceversa like an orange or tangerines will be really bitter. What people should know that you buy a Starbucks coffee for $5 but producers from that probably will get less than $0.50 and workers a fraction of that that's why you should try to make your own coffee instead of buying Starbucks or getting a Keurig or Lavazza Blue. Thanks for reading if you make it this far. English its not my native language so sorry for the grammar
love it. where does your family come from? love to hear stories like this.
Yes this is why I only buy directly from farms like yours or cafes who work directly with farms like yours.
Hi! English is not my mother tongue as well. But it would be great if you try to answer some of my questions.
Do you sell your coffee by yourself or directly to coffeeshops? Or maybe it can be found in supermarkets under some brand name?
As a final consumer in Germany, how can I recognize coffee from farms like yours? Should it be labelled as FairTrade or organic etc?
By far not the worst grammar I have seen. Some natives are far worse. You get your point across, which is something you cannot always say of natives, so you are doing pretty well
For a non native speaker your grammar is wonderful and it's really interesting to hear from someone who works with coffee full-time.
Can you please make a video about tea too
Was about to ask the same. Stay away from Chinese tea.
he should have talked about what the most efficent source of caffeine is in this video
A video about tea would be great.
I wonder if there would be any alternatives like shade grown coffee.
@@boqoll Taylor's of Harrogate ftw
@@ScarecrOmega Everything that's chinese.
My aunt in El Salvador grows coffee in fincas (shade grown, basically), where there are other fruit trees and plants growing alongside the coffee. First, the coffee is picked, then it is slightly roasted, then the shell is pulled off by hand (a very labor intensive task, as the shell does not come off easily), then it is roasted again and put into big sacks that only sell for $2 each. I did not believe her at first when she told me that was how much they paid, but considering how cheap a cup of coffee is about anywhere, it was quite infuriating to know that she and many other coffee farmers are not given enough to sustain themselves.
Meep City Al most the same happens to most of the produce. My uncle has orange fields he just sells a big box of oranges for about 0.05 US dollars. And once I’ve met a guy who inherited an advocado farm. He says he rathers to give them away, because he is frustrated about how little he can makes for a kilo of advocados, which is also about 0.05
C grade coffee is at .90 per pound. Consumers need to find local coffee roasters who publish transparency reports that tell buyers what they pay for green coffee. Love coffees from El Salvador. Try Aida B. Finca Kilimanjaro or some of the Bourbon varieties.
$2/lb FOB isn’t a terrible price. Especially;considering it would be exported in a lot approx 40k pounds. By the time it reaches the roaster, that coffee incurred additional shipping, customs, and finance charges and would end up being ~$3.10/lb to the roaster. The roaster would then roast the coffee and have a ~15% weight loss, which is accounted for in the final per pound roasted cost along with any packaging they use.
Video about chocolate please
This needs more likes.
PLEASE
S D. Coffee and Chocolate are suppose to be lost in the climate crisis. All of our foods will see a reduction in variety. It’s going to be more and more basic and simple - if we keep our course.
ChicagoTurtle1 I don’t think they have to be out completely but reduced by like 90%.
Its not a necessity, and bring a bunch of health issues with over use which is rampant. It should have a proper price tag for the luxury items they are and i think its okay to consume a few times a year during celebrations n stuff but not multiple times a day.
Crazy Dragy.
Ya probably. If that, then we will start to see things become rarities. Rare and highly sought after. Like trouffles.
next video idea: The true cost of alcohol?
Allu R thatd be really awesome! Im quite aware of the impact it ahs on people but ive never heard anything about it in this discussion.
Good one
I'm scared.
I get my locally produced moonshine here in WV for pretty good deal
Quite high.
Takes a great deal of grain to make it.
Plus the cost of shipping and alcohol related illnesses and accidents. We even tried banning it once. Though that didn’t end well
Long time viewer here! The amount of research that goes into these videos is insane, it’s like a mini essay in video form! Keep it up!
My parents will be furious if i show them this video...
Which is why i’m going to show them
James uber How?
James uber how so? Or u just don’t like the dirty facts about ur cheap morning coffee that u like so much?
@Gik76 by all calculation and scientific evidence we should be in cooling rn
@@theasherroseman So earth is cooling but ice is melting? Sound not right at all
@@DangNguyen-jw9fl No earth SHOULD be cooling according to trends in climate. But it isn't because of us humans. Our impact switched the earth from a cooling trend toward a warming trend.
My cognitive dissonance is not happy.
Fun, isn't it?
I saw the video pop up and I thought "damn, I will have to face this". It took me until today to watch it.
Guess it's time to start looking into better produced coffee now. Thanks, OCC :(:
Sara K. But Robusta is used for ____________.
@@puddingball Same, I've seen this one pop up in my recommendations so many times and just never had the guts to watch it. I'm glad i did though, as from now on I'll try to both lower my consumption and in exchange buy fairly produced coffee :)
I love your videos even though they make me depressed af lol and I don't think one can be exhausted of hearing your voice hahaha
I'm never exhausted of hearing your voice, you're great! This should be shown in every cafe.
Meh
Loved this video! So informative! Could you do a video on the cost of chocolate?
You might like Rotten on Netflix. They did an episode on cocoa farmers & their struggles.
This needs to be broadcasted on national television in every single coffee consuming country in the world!!
As an active coffee consumer, your video shed light on a very important topic that we try to avoid. There needs to be a demand for change if we wanna continue at this rate of consumption!
If you like coffee, look for coffee at local shops and specialty coffee shops, they typically try to instill practices that are better both for farmers and for the crop. When they are based in relationship they usually treat the plants better and the people working on the farms. The specialty stores usually can tell you directly what farm it comes from and have probably met the farmers.
The rate of consumption is the primary force that drive the modern farming. Old ways of farming can not meet the modern demand. So it is either reduce the demand or increase production. If for some instance these modern techniques stoped but the demand stays the same, the price will skyrocket. Coffee will become luxury items.
What about climate change and its effects on coffee production? I've read somewhere that by 2050 coffee on daily basis will be available only for a limited group of people (because of its price).
I heard by 2050 we are all dead anyway... Never trust any date which lays so far in the future
I believe that it is true that climate change is shrinking the regions where coffee can be grown.
Wait wtf ?? Whyy😭
@James uber I dont know the answer, that's why I asked 😉
@James uber i wouldnt agree with it. I mean the climate has always been changing, but since industrial revolution the process has been faster due to all the ghg emissions. And I didnt mean to blame the coffee industry on that, if that's what you understood from my comment. Just wanted to start a discussion about the impacts of climate change on coffee production
I just bought my first bag of single origin, more ethically priced/grown coffee and came back to this video. I’m aware it’s a social privilege to afford what this product is, and merely consuming isn’t a solution to a problem. As good as the coffee is, the knowledge you share is more important. Thank you for making this video.
buy from coffee roasters who are publicly open about transparency in their supply chain - this often means they are committed to paying the farmer a living wage either through fair trade certification or a direct partnership with the farm. It doesn't solve the entire issue but it ensures financial support to small farmers rather than the industrialized coffee industry which is driving the C-price so low farmers can't get by.
Your channel is amazing! Thanks for the great content and such important work that you are doing. I’m from Brazil and I want to congratulate you for emphasizing the responsibility of North countries in changing their consumption habits and pressing the government to change policies.
* Mutes audio while watching *
Wow, coffee is awesome
You're a steward/saint/gem! Thanks for these videos. Could you consider doing a video on the true cost of a grass lawn and the benefits of rewilding spaces, please!
Quit coffee years ago to get rid of my caffeine dependence. After having watched the video, I'm glad I did. Though it would be interesting to try out shade-grown coffee to taste the difference.
Shade grown coffee is often "_sweeter_" and has a more developed and complex acidity.
It depends on the coffee, but typically shade grown can range anywhere from nutty and chocolatey to fruity and sweet. It depends on the region and altitude it grows in as well! Most specialty coffee shops should have this type of coffee available as it is more of a craft and the roasteries attached to the shops will know where the beans come from and will probably know the family of the farmers who produce the green coffee beans.
Buy locally. They usually have discounts placed as well if you bring your own cup in. A lot of the mission of the specialty coffee industry is to be kinder to the coffee farmers and provide a fair trade economy where everyone in the system is given a fair wage and better quality product that is more craft than industry. It might be a bit more expensive but the pay off is greater if coffee is something that people enjoy.
Great video man! Loved the breakdown!
Please do one on McDonalds/fast food in general!
What a great video! Thank you for this! As an avid coffee drinker for more than a decade, I can honestly say that this video helps me become a more empowered consumer. Thanks, Charlie!
I'm not tired of your voice, it's just so soothing that I get sleepy
I absolutely love your videos! And I completely agree with your conclusions. We just got so used to buy everything so cheap without questioning the true cost of things. However, it seems that it's slowly happening a cultural shifting where we are more and more aware of our own purchases.
“If you’re exhausted of hearing my voice”
Bold of you to assume that I wouldn’t listen to a 1-hour podcast narrated by you. Stop that self-deprecating attitude, OCC
9hour podcast. On a loudspeaker loop outside the government offices.
Definitely not tired of hearing your voice. Really look forward to each video
I've been following this channel since it had 3k subscribers, only a few months ago! It's crazy how fast this channel has blown up!
Well researched and beautifully edited! I love the craftsmanship of this video
"if more farmers adopt tree intercropping systems like those used on coffee plantations, they could potentially sequester 17.2 gigatons of CO2 over the next thirty years."
So I'm a carbon management student and I love this channel - but constructively criticising - what does "more farmers" mean? that needs to be made precise as does this mean 1 farmer doing shadegrown? or 100,000 coffee farmers utilising shadegrown?
Keep up the good work! Love the videos and are great inspiration for my work.
Good old agroforestry. There's a lot of potential carbon sequestration to be found there, not just with coffee.
Definitely something worth looking into/researching.
Hay can I get your perspective on an idea?
Would a food forest/permaculture in people's front and back yards be able to work like mini carbon sinks and possibly help offset the rainfall loss that the shrinkage of the Amazon is going to create?
I don’t think the study he refers to is using number of farmers as basis to derive the 17.2 giga tonnes number. It’s more a comparison of how much area could potentially be converted to agroforestry systems from agroindustrial systems.
But the more important question here is not about how much area could be turned into agroforestry, but how this is done and if this would benefit the famers (and especially about the willingness of big agroindustrial companies to adopt the traditional system).
I basically comes down to the consumer to demand environmental and socially sustainable coffee and their willingness to pay for it...
Sorry for the rand though...
@@KeeperOfKeys22 There are many types of carbon sinks - we can use wet peatlands for instance to sequester carbon dioxide or forestry to do the same.
Mini-scale carbon sinks would be a wonderful idea, if rolled out on a mass scale. From my understanding, you can't offset rainfall loss by rolling out mini-scale carbon sinks like you suggested because climate is incredibly complex and the climate envelop (what we call conditions - including temperature and rainfall variations) would be largely very different in the US than it is in the Amazon rainforest.
However, I believe small-scale permaculture plantations like you suggested are excellent ways to get people to think more locally about their climate and produce mutual benefit for the people in your community and the planet as a whole. This would make the supply-chain for food a whole lot greener as transportation, treatment of food through chemicals can be controlled to the way you like it. Plus, permaculture is incredibly relevant as it creates ecosystems of mutual benefit for the plants and can also increase biodiversity in ways that monoculture doesn't even stand a chance.
These are just my two cents, many thanks for your question!
P.S. my lecturer is creating a carbon sink in the Scotland by planting around about 50,000 trees on his farm. Absolutely fantastic initative by one man - he's a true inspiration. His name is Dave Reay if you want a quick google :)
Can you make episode on?
1. Tea 🍵 Green Tea / Black Tea
2. USA Government Organic Food, Should I buy?
Why not?
How can I make better decisions?
3. Organic Items alternative options
Foods, hygiene, make up
4. Vegan Items alternative options
Foods, hygiene, make up
5. USA Spanish Language
Should I teach my child?
How can I learn accessible?
Who speak this?
6. USA Mandarin Chinese Language
Should I teach my child?
How can I learn accessible?
Who speak this?
7. USA Japanese Language
Should I teach my child?
How can I learn accessible?
Who speak this?
This video is fascinating and not just in regards to coffee.
It shows with an example how our understanding of progress as linear is flawed.
Industrialisation in this case didn't just straightup make everything better in every way for everyone.
It's a matter of prioritization and tradeoffs.
It focused on things people cared for at the time and neglected other factors people werent aware of/didnt care about as much.
Your videos are amazing! Great work!!
Super relevant topics and really amazing looking editing. Thanks!
What I really love about this channel is that you are not afraid of cirtisizing the capitalist system and its effect on ecology and climate! Really good and informative video, I had no idea about the difference of sun-gown and shade-grown and will defnitely look for the latter now!
Amazing, I had no idea at all. Thanks for the sources of information!! You truly are changing the world.
This channel is wonderful - keep up the good job
Another great, eye-opening video. This guy brings a much needed prophetic voice to the public. Keep it up.
'The majority world' - I love this term. It is not only factually true, but it flips the perspective of how we understand 'who matters'. Yes, the Global North is rich in money and military might, but the natural resources that power it, are from literally where most of humanity resides.
Thank you for this video! So the question now is: how can I know if the coffee in drinking is shade or sun grown?
Terrific Video! Heading out to find shade grown!
Go look at your local shops! Make sure there is a roastery attached!!! Specialty coffee is the way to go
Shade grown? Corporate farms got that shade thrown.
Underrated comment
My family has been growing coffee for over 3 generations under shade conditions. Infact India is one of the only countries where majority of coffee growers are still growing under shade of forest trees.
what about water consumption and carbon footprint when it comes to coffee?
Thunder #1 biggest energy consumption is actually boiling the water to make the coffee. People boil water for lots of things...spaghetti, tea, potatoes, rice, beans. Best to invent something that boils water as efficiently as possible.
I mean, coffee grows on trees/bushes/plants so it probably actually reduces CO2
Wow, you made a student very happy when you listed your resources!
I love your animations! Keep doing this please!
doing my part to boost the recommendation algorithm!
i wonder how yerba mate compares...
New to this channel. Was caught by surprise when you came to the very god damn right conclusion in the end.
Might have to check another video then...
damn. the animations are so smooth every time !
Great video. A point I would like to add that was not covered in the video was the emissions from transportation. Coffee is shipped all over the world, to every super market and cafe. If people really cared about the environment they would drink less coffee overall. The same is true for bananas. On a personal note I think people need to take more personal responsibility and do less 'finger point' at other countries and corporations; the only behavior you can change is your own.
I simultaneously agree and disagree with you about our own responsibility.
I disagree with it because while you and I think dearly about our planet, most big coorporations and governments do not in the slightest. People with lots of money and power came to be into that position because of the highly destructive methods that got us into that mess. They have the power and means to make an end to this and our individual impact on this is relatively small. Also, with every consumption that we make as a consumer there is at least one link in chain of production that is highly destructive for the workers or the environment. Completely ethical consumption is close to impossible without producing your means of living by entirely yourself. And even when you're doing that you are removing yourself from society, effectively minimizing the impact that you can have on the world. And that's a situation where we as individuals would act perfectly. I myself know that I'm doing plenty of things that could make change, even though I'm trying my hardest. When I'm thirsty and forgot my water bottle, I will sometimes buy plastic water bottles. When I want to go on vacation, I could either go with the more environmentally friendly train, but a rental car is literally 30% of the cost (and I don't make a lot of money). And I am one of the people in my circle who cares the most about the environment. Still individual people are imperfect.
But I also agree with you, because we as individuals can decide to swim against the stream we're currently in. Because others will realise that there is a better way for the planet when seeing us, it will be easier to follow in our footsteps. The more people swim against the stream, the more we can pressure the people currently in power to better their ways. We can vote for people who care for the environment, stop giving our money (and power) to the wrong people and influence others to do the same. It's not about absolving ourselves for the bad things we are doing now, it's about influencing ohers and changing the current of the stream. It's also exactly about taking away the arguments that big coorperations use. Oil companies like Shell make commercials where they say "how can you yourself make a change and drive less?" while they are the ones making trillions of dollars from fossil fuels. If we can say "we already drive minimally, so stop drilling for oil and invest all of your money in renewable energy" they will have to obey (if we put the right people in governments).
So I think our individual choices do certainly matter, but more in the way of a single vote for a better society and a future world. Eventually people with real power should have to make the big changes.
i wonder about the legitimacy and safety of using web search extensions like Ocean Hero and Ecosia are. Maybe in the future?
Nice video, I really liked it, keep it up!
Agroforestry farming, known as Talun huma, has been practiced for centuries in Indonesia, typical South East Asian cultivation method, not just for coffee but also for other crops. When coffee was introduced to Indonesia by the colonial Dutch in 1696, following a pattern seen in other colonial regions within the coffee belt coffee became a mass-produced, globally traded commodity, largely orchestrated by European colonial powers.
European companies established themselves in coffee-producing countries, importing slaves from Africa to work on plantations in the Caribbean, Asia, and the Americas. During this period, the main beneficiaries of coffee sales were the European colonial powers and companies. However, the farmers in coffee-producing regions, like Indonesia, did not receive fair benefits and were even burdened with taxes. Eduard Douwes Dekker described this historical injustice in his famous book "Max Havelaar," also known as "Multatuli."
Despite this dark history, coffee has become the second most consumed beverage globally, which is truly remarkable. A video on this topic could hold impactful meaning for coffee consumers worldwide, encouraging awareness and appreciation for the complex history behind this beloved beverage and the impact that it would bear from climate change and continuously increasing market demand.
Can you go over chocolate, tree nuts, and tropical fruits as well?
I'd really love if big chains like Starbucks, McDonalds and Tim Horton's etc would acknowledge this problem. Everything in moderation is an idea that doesn't seem to exist in the Global North.
I drink tea, but I know that it truly isn't much better.
Great video!
Sustainably Savvy You can also buy from single microlots or farms.Aside from the uniform grain size all those coffees taste horrible. Douse anything in milk and sugar then everything tastes splendid. Coffee is like wine.
i don't get it. These videos seem like they deserve millions of views and they do because they're as informative and insightful as those of ted ed or any other educational videos, also made with great care and efforts. Anw all i wish is u get more recognition man, u've been incredible
That was really interesting. Would you like to do a documentary on Nespresso? It would be really nice to be able to see if they, as they say, reuse de plastic capsules and which kinf of coffee they offer (do they offer shade grown coffee??) Thank you :)
Keep up the good fight
Buy Fair Trade Certified coffee. Make sure you know where it’s coming from
What about UTZ certificated coffee?
great video once again! always love the content!
How is the shade grown coffee picked? Is this all manually? How big is the difference in yield? So many questions
You should do a podcast excellent program !
thank you again. you are awesome!
Make sure to do organic and fair trade coffee, just like chocolate! ☕
great video! how can I identify shade grown coffee? are there specific brands or labels to consider?
Great informative video. I agree that the welfare of the environment and the farmers should be prioritized above all else, and I actually believe that this scenario will happen in the near future given all the awareness videos like yours provide.
My only concern as a fellow coffee lover -- once industrialized coffee growing methods are controlled, this would reduce the coffee supply globally thus increasing bean costs per pound/gram; ultimately increasing the effective price of our cup of joe :(
Right before this started I got an ad for coffee...
Could you do a video on the fires going on in NSW, Australia?
Seems like you were right on the verge of discussing fair trade.
how do you know your coffee is shade grown? would love to try it
Usually if you go to a specialty coffee store, they will have "shade grown" written on the bag. Most grocery stores except for whole foods wont have them (and whole foods has it because it sources locally). Ultimately try and buy locally because they do relationship coffee and most will be shade grown.
Buy your coffee from India because 100% of indian coffee is shade grown due to our weather pattern
A video on tea would be great!
Never know that you can industrialize coffee 😥, I grew up only seeing coffee plants grows among other plantations like cloves and cashews.
Biodiverse farming needs to be implemented everywhere
You should do this for other products too like tobacco or alcoholic beverages
I would love to see a video about "Fairphone" from you! :)
For having quit smoking (twice) and having stopped coffee, I don't know which habit was hardest to kick, but both were tough.
Wonderful information! I had forgotten about this. I'm going to stop buying corporate produced coffee now and only ensure I buy shade-grown from ethical coffee farms. It's worth it to pay more so these workers can have a decent life and to protect the environment.
"if you're exhausted of hearing my voice.." Well thats where you're wrong sir
Thank you !
You mention purchasing single source, shade-grown coffee but are there specific "calls to actions" relative to your second point of re-orientating the global economy like supporting specific organizations doing work in this area? Thanks!
Support local coffee shops that are in the "specialty" realm. It sounds "snooty" but usually you can get the more ethically grown coffee that support the farmers and workers. They also are typically shade grown and fair trade. Though sometimes those labels are expensive to put onto the bags themselves. In terms of being a conscious coffee consumer, specialty and local will be the better way to go because if the coffee shop is connected to a roastery typically they can tell you directly where the beans came (farm and all) from and what processes they use to bring the coffee to the buyers.
And usually the price is the same or similar enough. I buy 15 dollar bags.
Nice video. I would have liked more information om the water use, especially compared to tea.
I usually buy Nescafé. Are there any good brands i can purchase from ?
Is instant coffee just as bad? Idk what else to put in my milk😩 I just use very little of it but I have no idea what I could replace it with??!!
Actually, the coffee is the lesser evil in your cup. Milk is way worst… for the environment, for your health, and for the cows, of course.
Ronny Ramirez No, I drink soy, Almond, cashew milk.. But I’ve heard soy is bad too. Man idont even know whats good anymore
@@bbygrlpt2 soy production is bad only because 80% of it goes to feed livestock. You could try oat or almond milk instead :)
For all the aforesaid reasons people should prefer Colombian coffee, which is grown traditionally with great agroforestry practices and benefits small to mid-scale farmers. Juan Valdez is an option, but there are many more, offering cheaper and better grain. +1: Robusta coffee is very bitter, but not aromatic; Arabica (the one we grow) is quite the opposite, sweet to fruity taste and an incredible aroma. Unfortunately, large-scale investors have bought harvests in advance to speculate with the prices and keep paying producers the minimum possible, regardless of positive changes in value. I know it is a mixed blessing but farmers still feel that once again, a rich gringo is getting the lion's share of the deal.
You can always buy properly sourced speaciality coffee from your local roaster. To these saying they drink tea instead - do you think that that doesn't have similar environmental risks? If you buy coffee that is produced in more traditionaly setup way, the roaster buys it directly from farmer and pays more than commodity coffee price you can drink coffee without really thinking you have done something bad. I see comments on this video like the issue is black and white - it isn't and it never will be. Buy quality produce, it doesn't have to have stupid organic label - it needs to be traceble, well paid for and produced in sustainable way. But this type of coffee doesnt cost 15USD per kg....
Daniel Měrka 💯💯💯💯💯
Can you please do a video on Rebo the smart bottle that supposedly cleans the oceans plastics?
One question I didn't notice addressed here, reducing mechanisation means employing more manual labour, which pushes the price up for the producers (even if they are paying extremely low wages that's still a cost increase) what is the proposed solution to motivate producers to make this switch? Other than encourage people in richer countries to buy coffee that cost's many times more than they are used to. How do we stop this from pushing the burden onto the poorest and least powerful people in the world?
Please do a video on Environmental Charities such as Rainforest Trust, World Land Trust, WWF etc!
Thank you
I have been looking for coffee that is shade-grown for a while now but I cannot find information about it anywhere. There is information about it beeing ecological and fairtrade but no more than that. Also I don't want to buy my coffee online do to higher environmental transportations cost.
So how do we know if the coffee beans we're consuming are shade grown or not?
When the conversation about coffee comes up. Im always surprised that the single use cups are not mentioned! They contribute slighificqntly further to the unsustainable nature of coffee and reusable coffee cups should be encouraged.
Jai Adam They are terrible in so many ways. No coffee lover does that.
I consider my behaviors and purchases pretty environmentally friendly (Definitely not perfect), but giving up coffee is so incredibly hard. I value the Earth’s well being over my own desires, but DAMN it’s so hard giving up this drink... it’s so good. Great video as usual!
Zoology Just buy from your local cafes who often have a direct relationship with individual farms, who then invest back into coffee.
I feel similar about tea. (Though its more wondering how sustainable it is rather than knowing its not)
Usually i buy seasonal and regional as much as possible (and avoid vegetables that are not)
I drink teas daily and it's one of the few things i make an exception for there. Though i do try to only go for organic one.
Diana Lee - good point, thanks
Gewreid - Think I heard tea is generally more sustainable than coffee is? I should drink that more often
Zoology This video is shading companies like nestlé and the generic brands. Other than colombia and ethiopia none of the countries produce coffee that are high enough quality for specialty coffee. It is a very narrow region in Brazil for ex. The care that goes into coffee is similar to that of wine. You need to take care of the land to produce a good bean. Duromina coffee for example was what brought them wealth. Local for me means Hawai`i as it's too cold in North America for coffee. California coffees are starting to exist but it's so so so expensive like 35 a cup expensive.
Can I ask you again...could you please consider making a video on the Terraton Initiative and regenerative Agriculture? I would be really happy 😄
I always wonder, why is less mechanization better?
I noticed Americans sometimes pronounce "s" as "sh" exmplified by the way he pronounces "s(h)tream", "des(h)truction", "cons(h)truction", "s(h)trikes" etc. Is this pronounciation from a particular region ?
nah dawg its just easier to say
Mid west but most of America
Hey I like your channel and videos. And I support your messages a lot. but for the point of clarity I think if you use statistics you should show them in a way that is not at all misleading. I am not accusing you of misinformation, because what you say is, for what I say, true. But when you say we can reduce "17,2 gigatons of co2 over 30 years" and then that the US produced "6,5 gigatons of co2" in 2016 that might be a bit confusing for some viewers.
I don't want to undermine your arguments because it does not change a thing about it, but I do believe you understand what I am trying to say.
So anyway keep up the good work!
how can i differentiate which ones are shade-grown and which ones aren't?
Alya ‘Aathira Jasmine- It’s a big upselling point for producers so if it’s shade-grown they will list it on the bag. There are three labels to pay attention to with coffee: shade-grown, fairtrade and organic if you are looking to buy more ethical and ecologically-friendly coffee. The coffee industry has strong ties to unethical producers that use child slave-labor, so fair trade is important as they have strict standards for their employees ensuring that there are age and labor restrictions. The best coffee that I have found so far is from a company called Growers Alliance Coffee which is organic, fairtrade and shade-grown. I’m sure you can find others online if that interests you. Good luck! 👍🏻✨
@@haileyukulele6531 thank you very much!😊
do you create these videos using Adobe After Effects? I like your style of motion graphics. And the subject matter of course :)