The 5 Best Sustainable Instant Coffee Brands for Every Traveller
Exploring the world is something wonderful: expanding your horizons, learning about new cultures, meeting new people, taking tons of pictures, experiencing marvellous sights, thriving in a new environment, having a lot of fun, and… becoming more wasteful?
Wait that doesn’t sound right!
Even the most passionate sustainability activists find staying “green” on the road difficult. This is especially true for passionate coffee drinkers, who often fall in the wormhole of choosing their daily cup of coffee based solely on the pricing and taste – not considering how fair-trade their coffee actually is.
Keep this article as your informative personal overview of the five best sustainable instant coffee brands, will keep you energised and warmed no matter which side of the world you’re in. Here they are:
Kickapoo Coffee
Since the very start of the company, Kickapoo Coffee has been focused on sustainable development and making fair trade work. A member of Coop Coffees, an organisation that allows it to work and communicate directly to the farmers, Kickapoo Coffee focuses on building a long-lasting relationship with the growers, nurtured through annual visits.
Importing its own coffee seems to be doing the trick: the company has been winning awards for quality since 2005. In 2016, 97% of their coffee was certified organic.
You can order their coffee from anywhere in the United States with free shipping on any order over $50, but unfortunately they currently don’t offer international shipments.
Conscious Coffees
Conscious Coffee is one certified B Corporation that owes its place on this list to the brilliant brewing process, in addition to its inspiring mission. They import their own coffee, working directly with growers and looking to develop and foster long-term relationships with them. They believe this is a part of the secret formula for great-tasting coffee.
They have also expanded their interest in education, helping consumers learn more about different impacts of growing, harvesting, trading and roasting coffee. This education includes social, economic and environmental aspects. If there’s one thing they’re committed to it is being and staying green.
They have yet to start shipping internationally, so this is another brand to bulk up on before your international trip or to choose if you’re making a US-based tour.
Cafeology
This UK-based company is not only socially responsible, but they also work hard to reduce the carbon footprint of their facilities. Cafeology was started with the ideology of preserving existing resources for future generations, and all business processes comply with the ethical and environmental principles they have set for themselves.
They source their products directly and really comprehend, as well as manage, the entire supply chain. Not unlike the previously mentioned brands, Cafeology prides itself on nurturing long-term relationships with growers.
What really sets them apart is the fact that their organic coffee is certified with a Bird-Friendly Habitat accreditation, besides the Fairtrade accreditation.
Cafeology makes coffee roasting into a science, living up to their name, by using a unique German roasting system that uses a high powered hot air stream to roast the coffee.
They ship anywhere in the UK, and are a good solution for Europe-based travellers.
Cafédirect
Another UK company, Cafédirect has truly made a name for itself amongst coffee roasters. They go above and beyond to help improve the conditions farmers and growers are functioning in by investing 50% of their profits into the Cafédirect Producers’ Foundation: a charity working to improve sustainability and livelihood of farmers everywhere.
The amazing part is that the charity itself is run by farmers, because who better knows the reality of the lifestyle. They are given the opportunity to recognise the obstacles and directly have an impact on generating innovative solutions.
If you’re still not convinced on how far Cafédirect takes fair trade, here’s a fact for you: two out of their eight board directors are coffee producers themselves.
Pura Vida Coffee
One of the first to recognise the importance of fair trade and start selling solely Fair trade coffee, Pura Vida Coffee has only been getting better through the years. The vast range of their certificates includes those for Shade Grown and Organic processes spanning the entire product range.
As a company, they are also aware of the environmental impact they have and are actively working on reducing their environmental footprint. But that’s still not the best thing about them.
Pura Vida Coffee has a non-profit organisation named Create Good Foundation focusing on improving the lives of coffee farmers and their families.
Ordering more than $40 worth of products will get you free shipping, and they ship everywhere in the US.
These are just some of the fair trade brands you should be on the lookout for- handpicked by a passionate coffee drinker for their unique combination of roasting techniques, sustainability strategies and offering of different coffee blends. You can find a more cohesive list of fair trade companies here.
Armed with this knowledge, please help yourself to the deliciousness that is coffee, combined with the pleasure of knowing you have impacted the world positively, no matter where you are.
As a traveler continue to work on your understanding of the world but do it with all the responsibility of a sustainability activist. It’s hard at times but well worth it in the end.
Bon Voyage!
About the author: Samantha Rosario is a blogger, mother, and resident of the greatest city in the world, NYC. When not working at a Manhattan publishing house, she’s spending time with her family or putting pen to paper for her own personal pursuits. She is also an avid runner and swimmer and aims to complete an Ironman in 2018.