Drink Coffee, Save the Planet

Green Cathedral
The Angelus, March 2008

Okay, that may be a little bit exaggerated. But it is true that our choices often have an impact halfway around the world.

Take coffee, for instance. Most coffee is grown thousands of miles from the United States in communities where poverty is the rule. Thanks to Bishops Blend Coffee, which is offered in partnership with Episcopal Relief and Development, you can help foster a better way to grow and sell coffee:

- Fair Trade - Bishops Blend is grown by small coffee farmers in Central America, Ethiopia and Indonesia. They are guaranteed fair treatment and a fair price by selling through a cooperative, instead of on the open market.
- Organic - Bishops Blend is grown with no chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
- Shade-grown - Bishops Blend is grown beneath the tree canopy, which protects the coffee plants, helps return nutrients to the soil and reduces the need for clear-cutting.

Bishops Blend, which is sold by Seattle-based Pure Vida Coffee, also furthers ERD’s mission of responding to issues such as poverty, hunger, and disease worldwide. ERD receives 15% of the purchase price from the sale of Bishops Blend, which goes to its general fund. Note that’s 15% of the purchase price, not the much-lower profit.

The Bishops Blend section of the ERD website (see the link below) has much more information about Fair Trade, stories about how it has helped the lives of many coffee farmers and, of course, various ways to order it. You can order a bag or two at a time, or even have it delivered to you on a regular basis! The price of Bishops Blend is comparable to other premium coffee brands. Not to put down other national brands, but when you consider the benefits, Bishops Blend does offer a great deal for both you and the growers.

You can read more about Bishops Blend Coffee at http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/waystogive_63273_ENG_HTM.htm.