Arbor Day Coffee not only has amazing flavor and aroma – it is making a positive impact on our world as part of the Rain Forest Rescue program. Shade-grown coffee is helping to preserve rain forests, change lives and contribute to tree planting project around the world.
Around 40 years ago as the coffee industry really started to grow, farmers were paid on a per-pound basis regardless of the quality of their coffee. In order to increase yield and productivity, the farmers clear-cut areas of rain forest to make way for an easier, cheaper method of growing coffee in the sun. Farmers experience a short-term gain with this approach however, the soil becomes infertile after just a few years and more rain forest is inevitably cut down.
Shade-loving coffee plants thrive under the canopy — essentially saving an entire ecosystem including plant life, trees, birds, insects and mammals. Responsible, shade-grown farming practices also:
- • Maintain soil fertility.
- • Help prevent landslides and flash flooding.
- • Provide additional habitat for rain forest animals.
- • Eliminate the need for pesticides and fertilizers.
- • Protect local water supplies from contamination.
- • Produce higher quality of coffee.
Arbor Day Coffee is sustainably grown under the canopy of the rain forest. Every delicious cup you drink preserves this vital habitat. It also provides farmers with a fair wage, improves local infrastructure, and promotes education and healthy work environments.