“Despite, the demand for organic certified coffees keeps rising, its production is on decline; presumably because it offers little to no benefits to the farmers who produce it. Furthermore, there is no scientific consensus whether the production and consumption of organic coffee represents an ethical, environmental or a health benefit at all. “
In recent years the popularity of organic food has exploded and coffee hasn’t been the exception, from being just an option for a selected few, it has become almost a moral and environmental responsibility for most people in the western world.
What does science say?
The majority of us consume organic coffee because we believe, it represents a more natural and eco-friendly alternative to regular coffee; supposedly free from pesticides and synthetic fertilizers that could potentially harm our heath and pollute the environment. However, what we don’t understand is that unlike us, plants do not consume organic matter as a source of food. In their natural habitat, they require the collaboration of microorganisms (decomposers) to reduce organic matter into basic inorganic components, plant’s roots could actually absorb and use as nutrition.
One of the most revolutionary innovations in twelve thousand years of human agriculture history, was by far the invention of commercial fertilizers, it allowed farmers for the first time to boost, re-use and optimize exhausted and unfertile soils for agriculture by the addition of vital nutrients in their pure and concentrated form. Consequently, global food supply thrive and with it human population as well.
What about pesticides?
Another popular misconception is that organic coffee is pesticide free, however although pesticide use is discourage in organic coffee production, it is definitely not forbidden, there are several organic pesticides options that use natural but powerful toxins like toxic oils, sulfides, potash and heavy metals. Regardless their natural origin, they are as toxic as their synthetic counterparts.
SEE ALSO: What do coffee dry-mills do?
Does organic coffee help coffee farmers?
Surprisingly, a huge portion of all coffee produced in the world grows organically. It is well known and documented that most global coffee farmers are small scale and unorganized individuals who produce less than five 60Kg coffee bags each on average, many of them live in countries where access to commercial fertilizer is limited or it is restricted to strategically important crops with higher nutritional value. In countries like Ethiopia alone, presumably more that 90% of the coffee grows this way, however this is organic coffee by default, consequence of poverty, isolation and lack of management or neglect. These same reasons make this coffee un-certifiable, that’s why only 5% of all Ethiopian coffee accounts as certified organic coffee. Farmers who don’t have the resources to pay auditing /implementation fees nor have the organization level or skills, would never achieve any type of certification including organic.
Ironically, there are a small group of privilege farmers who do have the resources and organization skills to potentially be certified organic, however these farmers must produce coffee intensively and at a certain scale in order to be profitable; and to achieve it, the use of fertilizers is essential.
After so many years of intensive farming most of the fertile land is exhausted or inaccessible and only a few places on earth remain viable for coffee to be farmed organically and intensively at the same time. Additionally, organic fertilizers are inefficient and expensive, elevating cost of production and reducing yields. This together with permanent low coffee market prices makes really difficult for commercial coffee farmers to successfully produce organic certified coffee.
What are the consequences of an unfulfilled demand?
As I described above, coffee farmers who can produce organic coffee are unable to certify it and the ones who can certify it, struggle really hard to produce it. This paradox has brought along with it lots of corruption, transforming the certification seal in merchandise of trade and object of desire. Subsequently, it is not strange to witness organic certifications being sold in the black market and farmers cheating by hiding away fertilizers and pesticides previous auditing visits by certification agencies. It’s actually unknown how much of the world’s certified organic coffee is just traditional coffee rebranded as organic. But, the economic motivations are substantial, so it shouldn’t be a surprise if it is more than we think.
Sadly, this global obsession for organic coffee has deflected our attention from what really matters, instead of focusing in suspicious and unreliable organic coffee certifications, we should keep our eyes over the environment and the social struggles farmers are experiencing in countries where coffee is produced.
So what can we do?
If you are serious about organic coffee, don’t expect a certification seal to do the work for you. Buy coffee from vulnerable smallholder coffee farmers from east Africa who have no access to commercial fertilizers and pesticides and at the same time help them get into an international market, like it is the case of most coffees coming from Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia and DRC. Additionally, Central America and certain parts of Colombia have the most fertile soils in the world, where nutrients are constantly being restored by the destructive action of volcanos. The most recent “Volcán de Fuego” that erupted in June 2018, responsible for so many deaths and destruction in Guatemala. It is a clear example of how nature gives birth life through chaos, spreading devastation but at the same time renewing soils and boosting local agricultural prosperity for the years to come. Colombia and Central America in general are those rare places on earth where intensive organic coffee farming is still possible.
SEE ALSO: How coffee price below $1.00 affects coffee farmers?
The issues associated with organic certification extends to other crops as well; so if you really want to help the environment and improve your health at the same time always prefer locally grown and/or seasonal foods rather than organic certified alternatives and if you are lucky enough to own a backyard don’t miss out the chance to grow some of your own food. It’s a decision you will never regret.