To maintain high production and growing rates of plants, synthetically obtained fertilizers are commonly used. Excessive amounts of fertilizers damage the natural ecosystem and cause various environmental problems. In relation to the environment and its sustainability, another great environmental, economic, and social issue is food loss and waste. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of spent coffee grounds (SCG) on soil properties, rye growth, and their possibilities to be used as the biodegradable and organic material in the production of organic bulk fertilizer. This study demonstrated that spent coffee grounds contain primary nutrients; moreover, SCG could increase the content of soil organic matter. The addition of 4 wt% to 8 wt% SCG increased the number of spore-forming bacteria from <103 colony forming units/g soil (CFU/g soil) to 3 × 104 CFU/g soil, along with nitrogen assimilating bacteria (plain soil resulted in 5.0 × 105 CFU/g, and addition of SCG increased the value to 5.0 × 107 CFU/g). Since spent coffee grounds have a relatively high porosity and absorbance (25.3 ± 3.4 wt% in a water vapor environment and 4.0 ± 0.6 wt% in the environment of saturated sodium nitrate solution), they could be used to reduce the amount of water required for irrigation. To fully exploit their nutritional value for plants, spent coffee grounds were mixed with green algae biomass along with urea, and, during the research, higher value products (organic bulk fertilizer) were obtained.

An increasing number of hospitality firms attempt to foster sustainable practices among their customers. Amongst these, incentives for customers to bring their own reusable products stand out. In this study, we first analyse whether consumers are willing to bring a reusable coffee cup (RCC) under the condition of a monetary incentive (qualitative decision) and the minimum discount required for individuals to be willing to use an RCC (quantitative decision). Second, we analyse the explanatory factors impacting these two decisions. Several factors are proposed to explain an individual's willingness to bring an RCC including their environmental knowledge and involvement, and personal restrictions for using an RCC. An empirical application, conducted on 1,371 individuals using a Heckit model, allows us to conduct a joint modelling and provide a novel methodological contribution to the study of the willingness, and barriers, of individuals towards the use of RCCs in the coffee shop industry.

The coffee industry has experienced two major trends: the development of connoisseur consumption of specialty coffee and the importance of sustainability. Despite the increasing concomitant relevance of both trends, literature on how sustainability has been interlacing with connoisseur consumption is rather limited. Therefore, this paper aims to analyse how connoisseur consumers (CC) integrate sustainability into their coffee consumption practices.

Presenta iniciativas de desarrollo bajo el enfoque de bioeconomía, un modelo de aprovechamiento de recursos y principios biológicos en la producción y la industrialización dentro del cultivo del café. Observa la cadena productiva del café y sus subproductos de los residuos para reconocer las crisis y oportunidades, así como los principales retos y oportunidades.

Sustainability certifications, or eco-labels, inform consumers about the environmental conservation attributes of a product and must be updated to accommodate advances in scientific knowledge and changes in market conditions. We evaluated the willingness to pay (WTP) for sustainability attributes of the Bird Friendly® coffee certification and found that coffee consumers value an agrochemical-free (e.g. organic) label over a biodiversity conservation label. We designed and implemented a choice experiment where consumers choose between conventional coffee and coffee with four sustainable attributes often listed on packages: organic, pesticide-free, shade-grown, and Bird Friendly. Consumers were willing to pay a premium of $2.20 per 12 oz for Bird Friendly coffee over a conventional coffee with no sustainable attributes. Premiums are higher for organic ($5.80) or pesticide-free coffee ($3.60), and lower for shade grown coffee ($1.40). Because consumers value agrochemical management relative to other features of biodiversity, our results suggest that ecolabels can maximize consumer interest by enforcing and promoting agrochemical standards, i.e. production without pesticides, in addition to the characteristics of preserving biodiversity.

The coffee plant Coffea spp. offers much more than the well-known drink made from the roasted coffee bean. During its cultivation and production, a wide variety of by-products are accrued, most of which are currently unused, thermally recycled, or used as fertilizer or animal feed. Modern, ecologically oriented society attaches great importance to sustainability and waste reduction, so it makes sense to not dispose of the by-products of coffee production but to bring them into the value chain, most prominently as foods for human nutrition. There is certainly huge potential for all of these products, especially on markets not currently accessible due to restrictions, such as the novel food regulation in the European Union. The by-products could help mitigate the socioeconomic burden of coffee farmers caused by globally low coffee prices and increasing challenges due to climate change. The purpose of the conference session summarized in this article was to bring together international experts on coffee by-products and share the current scientific knowledge on all plant parts, including leaf, cherry, parchment, and silverskin, covering aspects from food chemistry and technology, nutrition, but also food safety and toxicology. The topic raised a huge interest from the audience and this article also contains a Q&A section with more than 20 answered questions.

Climate change is impacting crop performance and agricultural systems around the world with implications for farmers and consumers. We carried out a systematic review to synthesize evidence regarding the effects of environmental factors associated with climate change and management conditions associated with climate adaptation on the crop quality of a culturally-relevant perennial crop, coffee (Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora). Seventy-three articles were identified that addressed the study's research question including 42 articles on environmental factors, 20 articles on management conditions, and 11 articles on both. While variation was found between studies, findings highlight that coffee quality is vulnerable to changes in light exposure, altitude, water stress, temperature, carbon dioxide, and nutrient management. Both increases as well as decreases were found in secondary metabolites and sensory attributes that determine coffee quality in response to shifts in environmental and management conditions. The most consistent evidence identified through this systematic review includes the following two trends: (1) increased altitude is associated with improved sensory attributes of coffee and; (2) increased light exposure is associated with decreased sensory attributes of coffee. Research gaps were found regarding the effects of shifts in carbon dioxide, water stress, and temperature on the directionality (increase, decrease, or non-linear) of coffee quality and how this varies with location, elevation, and management conditions. This systematic review further identified the following research needs: (1) long-term studies that examine the interactive effects of multiple environmental factors and management conditions on coffee quality; (2) studies that examine the interaction between sensory attributes and secondary metabolites that determine coffee quality and; (3) studies on the feasibility of various climate-adaptation strategies for mitigating the effects of climate change on coffee quality. Evidence-based innovations are needed to mitigate climate impacts on coffee quality toward enhanced sustainability and resilience of the coffee sector from farm to cup.

This article explores the potential for domestic coffee markets to promote economic and social justice in Uganda. The authors argue that global supply chains, dominated by multinational corporations, have historically perpetuated inequality and exploitation in developing countries.

The authors conducted a case study of a coffee cooperative in Uganda that has sought to create a more equitable supply chain by focusing on the domestic market. The cooperative has implemented several initiatives to increase local demand for their coffee, including creating a brand identity, developing new products, and building partnerships with local businesses and institutions.
The study found that the cooperative has been successful in increasing domestic demand for their coffee and generating economic and social benefits for their members. The cooperative has been able to offer fair prices to farmers and support community development projects, such as education and health care initiatives.

The authors argue that promoting domestic coffee markets can help to decentralize power and promote economic and social justice by providing farmers with more control over their products and greater opportunities for economic and social development. However, the authors note that there are several challenges to developing viable domestic markets, including limited infrastructure, high costs, and competition from global supply chains.
Overall, the article suggests that promoting domestic coffee markets can be a promising strategy for promoting economic and social justice in developing countries, but that it requires careful planning and investment to be successful.

Shade-grown coffee is an important reservoir for tropical biodiversity, but habitat quality hinges on decisions made by farmers. Our research aims to investigate the link between coffee producers’ decisions and outcomes for biodiversity, using epiphytes as our focal group. Using qualitative methods, we interviewed 33 producers in northern Nicaragua to understand how they connect trees and epiphytes on their farms to ecosystem services and how personal values, access to agronomic expertise, labor supply, and financial stability influence decision-making. We used interview responses to construct six producer typologies. Most producers had strong positive attitudes toward trees and associated them with a variety of important ecosystem services. Smallholders were more likely to connect trees with provisioning services, while producers on larger farms and with greater agronomic knowledge emphasized regulating services. Most producers connected epiphytes primarily with aesthetic values. Across demographics, producers emphasized the restorative potential for shade coffee in repairing damage to soil, water, and nutrient cycles caused by other forms of agriculture. The conservation significance and sustainability of this social-ecological system can be maintained and expanded through economic and capacity-building conservation interventions, especially when those can be connected to values already held by farmers.

Coffee sector has a tendency to increase consumption and fall in international coffee prices, as a commodity. There is a need for a strategy to minimize the impact of high costs for producing families and maintaining the competitiveness of the product. In this context, the proper disposal of “Coffee Wastewater” (CWW) can be an alternative, both to mitigate the environmental impact, if it is discarded without treatment, and to generate a source of extra income for coffee growers, when used in the food, pharmaceutical industry, or cosmetic. Proper management of CWW, as well as knowledge of its composition and toxicity, could help to identify solutions at the beginning of the processing chain, however, to date, there are no reports that have discussed CWW. In order to identify effective solutions for this, data covering economic, social and sustainable aspects were verified, focusing on trends in the use of coffee residues, which stimulate the investigation of a new sustainable by-product, which will enable the generation of extra income for coffee growers who have difficulty in bear production costs. The impact can vary between coffee producers and their waste, creating mitigation opportunities.

As part of the Partnership for Gender Equity’s (PGE) exploration and support of gender-equitable practices in the coffee and cocoa sectors, the organization collaborated with Women Forward International, The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), and the Yale Jackson Institute for Global Affairs to explore and map current practices in the sector. Over a period of four months in early 2021, the team of four Yale graduate students (Abby Cohen, Diana Johnson, Maya Saint Germain, and Robin Schmid) conducted desk research and interviews with coffee and cocoa stakeholders, focusing on 22 public, private, and nonprofit extension and advisory service providers. The team’s research is summarized below, highlighting key themes, challenges, and best practices among coffee and cocoa EAS providers with respect to gender equity integration and inclusion in their approach to producer training and capacity building. The report concludes with recommendations for how EAS providers and industry allies can strengthen their approaches to gender equity as it relates to service offerings. PGE also received recommendations, and the report closes with PGE's further commitments to foster greater gender equity within the coffee and cocoa industries.

The crowds in the coffee trade, especially in the coffee shop sector, with the emergence of coffee roasteries that opened enliven the coffee market in Dubai. It is making special attention to roasting areas which are the core sales in the coffee sector. The emergence of products from software as a service such as Cropster, in its functions, provides convenience in roasting areas. In addition to controlling roasting activities, also roasting emission reductions and through their buyer-seller platform. Here, it is interesting to examine the level of sustainability in the coffee roastery area, whether the Cropster has a significant influence in helping sustainability in roasting phases in the coffee roastery and its impact.

En los últimos años la caficultura en el norte peruano ha tenido un gran auge y desarrollo, puntualmente en las provincias cafetaleras de Jaén y San Ignacio, en Cajamarca. Este eje cafetalero alberga al menos 36 organizaciones exportadores de café y un número superior a este de organizaciones emergentes. Asimismo, este eje ha logrado ubicarse en las primeras posiciones en los concursos de cafés especiales de alta calidad en los últimos 5 años, además de contar con la integración de importantes actores en la parte productiva, comercial, investigación y financiamiento. Así, uno de los productos de la agroindustria interna que se analiza es el café especial tostado, que podría consolidarse como un producto potencial a promover, mediante una estrategia de activación sectorial y del territorio bajo el enfoque de Sistemas Agroalimentarios Localizados (SIAL). Esta estrategia ayudaría a que esta región cafetalera se consolide como productora y exportadora de cafés especiales, no solamente del café como materia prima (café oro) sino como producto procesado, para mercados nicho o gourmet, retribuyendo en la calidad de vida de los pequeños productores cafetaleros, y contribuyendo a la seguridad alimentaria y al logro de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible.

Creating connections between consumers and producers (relational proximity) seems a promising approach to foster sustainable consumption behaviour in international food supply. In this intervention study, we tested three experiential marketing interventions to connect consumers to producers of an international community-supported agriculture (CSA) partnership for coffee (Teikei Coffee). Consumers recruited at a fair for sustainable products and lifestyles in Germany, (a) watched a promotional video about the coffee CSA, (b) attended a presentation of the coffee CSA, or (c) participated in a mindful tasting experience of the CSA coffee. Findings indicate that experiential marketing tools, to varying degrees, indeed create connections from consumers to producers, thereby fostering sustainable consumption behaviour. The findings can inform international food supply marketing efforts aimed at stimulating sustainable consumption.

This study reports the development of bio-based adsorbent by utilizing coffee endocarp (CE) waste as a raw material for lead (Pb) removal from liquid wastewater. The effect of NaOH and HCl as activation precursors on the characteristics and performance of the resulting adsorbents was investigated.