What is Shade Grown Coffee?

What is Shade Grown Coffee?

Shade grown coffee is high altitude Arabica coffee that is grown under the canopy of larger plants and trees of the rainforest. The coffee bush is actually a shade-loving plant that thrives in this micro-ecosystem and produces slightly larger, more flavorful beans than sun grown coffee. Shade grown coffee tends to grow slower in its natural rainforest habitat which creates a much richer, balanced coffee flavor. The shade grown coffee farmers respect the rainforest ecosystem and all that it encompasses. That is why they maintain the highest environmental standards when growing, picking, and processing their coffee beans. 

What is Sun Grown Coffee?

Sun grown coffee has really only been around since the mid 1970’s and it has proven to be an unsustainable micro-ecosystem that requires constant fertilization and the consistent use of pesticides. This is very good for the producers of fertilizers and pesticides but very bad for the farmers and the environment. Sun grown coffee is a hybrid plant that was “invented” in a misguided attempt to make coffee farming easier and more like wheat farming in Kansas, as an example. The idea back then was that if you mow down the rainforest and plant coffee bushes in nice neat rows, it would be easier to maintain and easier to harvest. I guess, in reality it is easier to walk up to a coffee bush and dump fertilizer on it or walk up to a coffee bush and spray it with pesticides and in fairness it is easier to walk up to a coffee bush and harvest it. But, one has to ask, what is price of that type of efficiency? Pollution, erosion, flooding, sickness, lower quality products, and the list goes on. It is true that larger coffee chains need more coffee, more often, and therefore need their coffee plants to produce coffee beans faster. The have found a way to grow lower-quality coffee beans but it has taken a toll on the rainforest and continues to be a controversial issue for the educated coffee consumer.

HOW DO YOU KNOW YOUR COFFEE BEANS ARE shade grown?

First off, we recommend that you do your research on your 'favorite' coffee supplier. Ask them if their coffee business supports the rainforest habitat and if they say yes, ask them how. Find out where they get their coffee beans, specifically the name of the coffee farms, coffee importers, or coffee cooperation they use to determine if their coffee beans are shade grown. Many large coffee comclomerants have realized that the eco-conscientious consumer is demanding Fair Trade, Shade Grown, and Organic coffee but that does not mean ALL of their coffee is all of those things. The trick they play is to offer selected coffee roasts that align with your ethical requirements but then use the crappy, sun grown, terrible for the environment, yet good for their bottom line coffee beans 90% of the time. If you want to support the rainforest, dig deeper!

How We Support Shade Grown Coffee

In 1997, Poverty Bay Coffee Company set out on the journey to be a part of the sustainable coffee movement, doing business in a way that supports the natural environment. We wanted to support the farmers. We wanted to save the birds and the frogs and all of the thousands of species that make the rainforest their home. We wanted to give you, the consumer, a coffee buying option that you can be proud of and tell your friends about.

When we looked at all of our options back in 1997, at first we thought the biggest concern in coffee was organic. It is an important issue, but the more research that we did, the clearer it became that whether or not our coffee beans were Shade Grown. By the way, if it is Shade Grown Coffee it is almost certainly also organic. We found out that the micro-ecosystem of a Rainforest gives the coffee bush everything that it needs to survive and to thrive. The soil is fertile. The natural enemies of the coffee bush are kept in check by their natural enemies, no need for pesticides. During our research, we came across the San Cristobal Coffee importers and discovered that their Direct Trade relationship with coffee farmers was going to be the only way we could guarantee that our coffee beans were all 100% Shade Grown. 

Where Can I Buy Shade Grown Coffee Online?

We sell only Shade Grown Coffee beans but there are other wonderful coffee companies that also offer Shade Grown Coffee. Our friends at Earth Easy have a comprehensive list as well as more information on the topic.