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Where Is The Best Place To Buy Organic Coffee?

Most of us know by now that organic coffee is a worthwhile choice. It’s better for the environment, better for the people who grow it, and it tastes better, too. However, it can be hard to find depending on where you live. People in major urban areas have access to a fairly good selection of organic coffees – ground or whole – at their local coffee shop or even at the grocery store. There are still plenty of places that don’t have this kind of coffee available, though. If you live in one of them, you might be disappointed at the selection of coffee you have to choose from.

The good news is that you have other options. Even if there are only a few types of organic coffee at your grocery store, or there aren’t any at all, there are a number of options that can help you. First, start checking out specialty stores in your area. Organic food co-ops, small cafes, and other places where good coffee and environmental responsibility are a priority may be able to offer you more varieties of organic coffee than your local large chain. You may be surprised by all the options available.

Of course, not all areas offer specialty coffee shops. In some places, there’s no organic coffee to be found at all. When this is your situation, the best place to turn is probably the Internet. The costs of operating a business online are far lower than those of a brick and mortar store, so it’s a place where specialist stores can flourish. Great coffee retailers are remarkably easy to find online, and they can carry just about every kind there is. That means that the organic coffee you’ve been looking for will be easy to find.

Whether you live somewhere that organic coffee isn’t available, or you’re simply not happy with the selection you can obtain, online shopping is a great solution. There’s no reason to sacrifice quality if you don’t have to. Look on the Internet to find unusual varieties and the highest quality beans – all grown organically.

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What Is Organic Coffee?

In order to be labeled as organic, coffee must be grown using methods that have as little impact on the environment as possible. Ideally, an organic system of production will help maintain and replenish the fertility of the soil, avoid use of toxic and unhealthy chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and help increase biological diversity. In the US, certification as organic coffee requires that farming must have been done without any prohibited substances for three years or more, that crop rotation to keep erosion down must be implemented, and that sustainable practices be used.

This results in coffee production that, unlike conventional methods, doesn’t pollute the water, is safe for workers, and produces a better coffee bean. Currently, sales of organic coffee account for about a hundred and ten million dollars, and the amount is growing. In 2008, over eighty-one million pounds of organic coffee were imported into North America. That’s about three percent of total coffee imports. The industry is growing at a rate of about thirty two percent a year – far more than the one to two percent growth of conventional coffee.

Organic coffee is currently being grown in forty different countries, located in the Caribbean, Central and South America, Asia and Africa, as well as in the US. The current leading producers of organic coffee are Ethiopia, Mexico, and Peru, however. You can find organic coffees on the market in nearly every form, from plain roasted beans to flavored, decaffeinated and instant coffees, organic chocolate covered coffee beans, candy, and many other coffee-related products. Coffee with the organic label can be found locally, or bought online, where even better selections are available.

In addition to the organic certification, coffee may carry a Fair Trade label (not all Fair Trade coffee is organic, but much of it is, and some basic environmental rules apply) and the Bird Friendly label, which indicates that the coffee is shade grown and promotes local biological diversity. All Bird Friendly coffee must be organic.

Organic Coffee Beans

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