Organic coffee

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Please improve this article if you can. (February 2008)

Organic coffee is coffee that has been grown according to organic farming techniques, usually without the use of artificial fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides.^[1]

The term organic can also refer to farms which incorporate socially responsible activities such as recycling, composting, soil health and environmental protections.

1 Organic Producers
2 The Effects of Organic Coffee on the Environment
3 The Organic Coffee Market
4 External links
5 Notes

[edit] Organic Producers

The primary producers of organic coffee are Peru, Ethiopia, and Mexico^[2].

In order to be sold as organic coffee in the U.S. it must gain organic certification and meet the following requirements:

Grown on land without synthetic pesticides or other prohibited substances for 3 years.
A sufficient buffer exists between the organic coffee and the closest traditional crop.
Sustainable crop rotation plan to prevent erosion, the depletion of soil nutrients, and control for pests.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] The Effects of Organic Coffee on the Environment

Organic agriculture stimulates the environment’s natural development of disease and pest control. Because much organic coffee is shade grown, large amounts of forest may be preserved. This preservation has many additional benefits: minimizing soil erosion, preserving habitat, especially for birds, further, the leaves from the trees and bird droppings naturally fertilize the soil. Birds also control pests by eating insects that eat the leaves of coffee plants.

[edit] The Organic Coffee Market

The initial amount of capital needed to grow an organic coffee crop is less than traditional because it does not require up front purchase of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. It typically yields a smaller crop and thus the farms tend to make less money relative to the size of the farm. In 2006, 67,000 metric tons of organic coffee were sold in the world ^[3], while world coffee consumption, including both organic and non-organic coffee was estimated at approximately 6,900,000 metric tons in 2005 ^[4].