1. Bring your reusable mug to the coffee shop.
Disposable cups are a huge source of trash in our landfills. By using a reusable mug when you are enjoying your coffee on the run you can feel good knowing you are not adding to that waste. Some places will even offer you a discount on your bill for bringing your own cup. There are also a wide variety of travel mugs on the market to fit your individual needs!
2. Drink your coffee at home.
Making a cup of coffee at home before you leave for work is a much greener choice than hitting the drive-thru line during your morning commute- plus it will save you some green in your pocket too! Creating a morning ritual for yourself not only helps to better prepare for the day ahead, it also give you an opportunity to grant yourself some well deserved “me time”. Rather catch up on some extra ZZZ’s than set aside in the A.M. to get your coffee at home? Invest in a coffee pot with a programmable timer so that your coffee is ready when you wake up. That’s a win-win-win!
3. Buy local. Choose your coffee wisely.
While coffee is not grown locally, knowing where your coffee is coming from can make all the difference. Buying from a local roaster means you can cut travel miles wherever possible, and allows you to get to know your coffee better. When coffee is sourced from people that are passionate about their product, and producing it in a humane, ethical, and sustainable way you can be confident in the quality – both in taste and for the planet. Generally, look for words like organic, shade grown, rainforest certified, or fair trade if you want to reduce your carbon footprint.
4. Brew in ways that limit waste.
There are loads of ways to brew coffee that involve little or no waste – think French Press, Aeropress, or percolator, and that’s just to name a few. Other methods like the drip brewer or Chemex require a filter, which you can toss in the compost after use. However, there are reusable filters on the market which eliminate the need to purchase paper filters all together. While single serve coffee pods are convenient when you only want one cup of coffee, studies have shown that the waste created by them in 2014 was enough to circle the earth 12 times. If you choose to brew the single serve route opt for more sustainable versions like our 90% biodegradable cups, just remove the foil and the rest of the pod can go into the compost.
5. Rethink your add-ins.
Processed creamers and individually packaged artificial sweeteners are not ideal for the environment or for your body. Try opting for organic milk, raw sugar, or homemade flavored sweeteners whenever possible.
6. Reuse your coffee grounds.
Coffee grounds are incredibly useful and don’t have to be tossed into the trash. There are many different ways to recycle your coffee grounds. For example, you could compost and garden with them, clean with them, or make your own exfoliating coffee body scrub with them. Check out this great recipe from our friends at Fable Naturals: DIY Fairtrafe Coffee Body Scrub.
A cup of Doi Chaang 