The Coffee Niche

All of a sudden, I am a fan of Kona coffee!

It’s not what you think, though. I am a fan because of the way Kona coffee is grown and the way the farmers treat their help.
I have been reading about the coffee farms in Hawaii’s Kona area and here are some things of interest that came to the surface:

• Kona is the home of the Ironman Triathlon – OK, not coffee related, but interesting, none the less.
• Organic shade grown Kona coffee beans are a huge benefit to our environment
• Chemicals: typically, coffee is sprayed with more chemicals than any other crop consumed by humans except for tobacco. But organic shade grown coffee by definition is grown chemical free.
• Bird habitat: the shade trees that provide the canopy for naturally grown Kona coffee allow birds to do what they do in nature. In areas where the ground has been stripped of vegetation for huge plantations of “sun” coffee, there is no place for the birds. In fact, migrating bird population has been in decline since the stripping of the rainforest for coffee plantations.
• Healthier Environment: as mentioned, organic shade grown coffee does not depend on chemicals, so there is no residual buildup in insects and birds around coffee plants. The shade trees and coffee plants help to clean the air of carbon dioxide and replenish oxygen. And the natural critters that inhabit the soil have not been harmed of removed which also alters the surrounding environment in a negative way.

Fair Trade Coffee helps families maintain a better lifestyle.
This is kind of a false statement with regard to Kona coffee. You see, since Kona is in the United States, there is no Fair Trade agreement available to them. Fair Trade is only for countries outside the US.
Kona farmers actually pay better than the Fair Trade minimum wage, so their workers are much better off than if they worked for a Fair Trade coffee grower.
OK, nuf said. Just get some Organic Kona coffee beans, grind ‘em, brew ‘em, and relax. Warning, it ain’t cheap, but boy is it good… real good.