Like many people I'm hooked on a good cup of coffee in the morning. This morning ritual for millions of people has a large impact around the world. The way it is grown, the shipping, the trading and the grinding and brewing all use resources along the way. I haven't tried to stop because I do enjoy it. That is one of the problems with our economy is that we get used to products and take for granted the amount of resources that goes into us getting it. In the meantime, there are a few ways to minimize the waste associated with that cup of joe.
Use permanent coffee filters in your coffee maker to minimize wasted paper and the possible intake of chemicals from the bleached paper. Carry a travel mug that is stainless steel inside so you reduce the amount of coffee cups in the garbage. Stainless is better than plastic because of the way plastic can react to the heat. Buy coffee in bulk to minimize the packaging associated with your coffee buying. Finally, try and buy organic and fair trade where possible. The documentary Black Gold is quite informative and will make you think about your morning cup differently.
3 comments:
I to am hooked on coffee, but just buy bulk cheap coffee. It's just a habit not thing where I'm trying to make my ego happy with something expensive.
And I don't make it strong, just one level scoop. Transportation of products does bother me, but I can't grow coffee beans here that I know of. Maybe I should look into that.
I do use paper filters, I read somewhere that they filter out some oil that isn't so great for you, may or may not be true.
I spread the grounds under the apple tree, if I decide to put in a garden I will toss the grounds and filters in a blender with some water and break them down into a liquid I can pour out in the garden.
Or just bury them so they can decompose, I know one lady with a garden that does that.
Hum, I'd better make a cake this morning.
I keep a package of 500 coffee filters on hand in case I need them to filter drinking water with.
You can boil almost any dirty water and filter it through 2 or 3 filters and it will be drinkable.
Excellent tip on the coffee filters. I do have a lot of extras kicking around and was wondering what to do with them. Now I will keep them in my emergency supplies. Thanks.
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