Letter from the Owner: Sustainable Agriculture

Dear Caffe Ibis Customers:

After 25 years as a green business, I thought I had a pretty good handle on what sustainable agriculture was about. I had even taken ecology classes from one of the first presidents of the American Society of Ecology. We were one of the earliest specialty coffee retailers to support organically grown coffees when first available. Inadvertently, we had been supporting shade grown coffee because of our commitment to Old World varieties of organic coffee and mountain grown coffees. Old World varieties need shade to thrive and mountain-grown coffees tend to be the least attractive to large-scale production practices that include sun technification.

Due to our personal family history (small farmers) we have always tried to support small family farms through paying for the quality they provide through extra attention to the crop: be it grapes, olives, carrots, or coffee. When we attended the Sustainable Coffee Conference in Denver in 1998 our eyes were opened a little wider to the issues surrounding sustainable agriculture.

At the Sustainable Coffee Conference, people from every aspect of coffee production from grower to consumer were present. Their input was enlightening. Since attending that conference, I have spent time with growers, brokers, and organizations involved in nearly every aspect of sustainable agriculture. We have worked hard to source coffees that meet our rigorous standards for cup quality from within the sustainability spectrum. It has been heartening to see growers, developers, and brokers responding to the increasing demand for coffees meeting sustainability criteria. So just what are these sustainability criteria? Who defines the criteria? Why should one consider buying sustainably grown coffee?

Many people in the industry define sustainable coffee as Organic, Shade Grown, and Fair Traded. At Caffe Ibis, to consider coffees as our Gold Standard Sustainable coffees they must be Certified Organic, Certified Shade Grown, Certified Fair Traded, Mountain Grown Specialty Grade, and have Great Cup Quality.

Sincerely,

Randy Wirth
Co-Owner/Head Roaster
Caffe Ibis Coffee Roasting