Is Your Morning Coffee Sustainable?

Coffee is one of those things that is part of almost everyone’s routine. Wake up--coffee, feeling tired--coffee, meeting up with a friend-- how about coffee, got a energetic toddler at home?-- yes, please- more coffee, you get the idea! ;) However, have you ever wondered if your morning coffee was sustainable? Most of us probably don’t even think about it, but there are lots of ways to make your coffee that can help AND harm our planet! Keep reading to find out the answer to the question: “Is your morning coffee sustainable?”

Single Serve Pods

As convenient as your office Keurig machine might seem, those little cups are terrible for the planet! In 2015, enough K-Cups were manufactured to wrap around Earth 10.5 times. That’s 10 BILLION K-Cups in just ONE year! It’s 2021 now… Imagine how many empty K-Cups (not to mention other brands) sit in our landfills right now. It’s a sad thought, but there are some things you can do to minimize this! If we all work together to make small changes, we can make a real difference for our home. So, instead of using those plastic pods, get yourself a bag of ground coffee (sustainably sourced) and a reusable miniature filter. These little guys are the same size as the plastic pods, but you just wash them out and refill them between uses instead of throwing them away! Easy peasy. 

Paper Filters

It might seem like paper filters aren’t an issue, but most of them are bleached with harmful chemicals that will leach into the ground when they end up in a landfill. Instead of these, try buying reusable filters. They look just like the reusable single serve filter we talked about above--just bigger! You can also try one of these:

French Press
These are super easy to use, and you don’t need anything but water and coffee to make them work! Just steep your coffee grounds in water inside of it, then press the lever down to filter out the grounds and make a perfect cup o’ joe!

Stainless Steel Pour-Over Filter/Cone
This is also simple to work with. Just place your coffee grounds in the filter, and pour hot water over them! Viola! Delicious, sustainable coffee.

AeroPress
This is very similar to the french press, but it has pieces that come apart. You have a chamber, a reusable filter, and the piece that presses the coffee out! These are also easy to use, and a lot of coffee connoisseurs actually think AeroPress coffee is the best. 

Bring Your Own Cup

If making your own coffee at home isn’t your thing, you can still minimize your carbon footprint! Get an insulated mug with a lid to bring to your favorite cafe. Lots of them sell their own, and give you a bonus or discount for using them! This will save a LOT of disposable cups from ending up in a landfill. Every year, Americans throw away 25 billion cups. Imagine if everyone had their own cup they just washed every day, instead of making all that waste!

Use Sustainable Coffee Brands

Unfortunately, not every coffee brand sources its beans ethically. However, several brands do, and they will always have that on their label! It will say “fair trade,” “sustainably sourced,” or something else to that effect. Just keep an eye out and try different ones until you find your winner!

I hope this blog has inspired you to be more mindful of the sustainability of your morning coffee! Let me know in the comments what your favorite method is, any sustainable brands you’ve discovered, or if you just have a question! I’d love to chat with you. :)

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