It is true, I have a short memory, but I may never admit that to my wife. However, we all have those instances, words, or visuals that are seared into our memory—forever changing our journey through life. Mine happened in 2009, when I was searching for direction after graduating high school. I traveled to Tanzania and my father's birthplace, Zimbabwe. I was with a missionary in Zimbabwe and we were headed to dinner with the director of an elementary school in Bulawayo founded by my host. I recall the missionary's words, "Careful, raw sewage runs down this street. Don't touch anything, cholera is a nasty disease." Earlier that day I had witnessed a city of rubble and overgrown vegetation, which contrasted sharply with my childhood memories of a beautiful city. That day and those experiences granted me my initial bearings.
Back for more? I certainly hope so! This article dives deeper than the primer into fully washed processing and explores some of the science behind fermentation and other reasons this type of processing is used other than flavor profile. It’s going to get a bit technical, but I hope you hang in there because if … More Wet Processing: An In-Depth Look
“What kind of detergent do they use in the fully washed process?” This was one of responses from some of my favorite—and snarky—baristas when we were discussing washed coffee. Obviously, they were kidding, but if you’ve never spent time at a coffee mill, which the majority of us coffee drinkers haven’t, then the world of … More The Process of Processing: A Primer on Coffee Processing
“Wastewater itself is a valuable resource, even the term wastewater is an oxymoron. We need to stop seeing it as a burden to be dealt with. It’s not a waste and should not be a waste, especially in this world of water scarcity.” –Richard Connor, editor-in-chief of the United Nations’ 2017 World Water Development Report … More 23. Happy World Water Day!
Awhile back, Paul Hicks touched on taking another look at the water footprint methodology for coffee in this post. This post is a continuation of that conversation and will consider a few more items that need to be thought of when discussing the water footprint of coffee. It is important to understand its current limitations … More 22. Revisiting Coffee’s Water Footprint
Below is a post recently posted on the CRS Coffeelands Blog that I authored to describe the new watershed management tool they have been working to build. Knowledge-based Coffee Watershed Management We know a lot about sustainable agricultural practices, and the specialty coffee industry has been a pioneer in incentivizing farmers to adapt good practices. … More 21. Calculating Water Benefits On Coffee Farms
It’s been awhile. Too long. Over a year. A lot has happened. I’ve finished my masters on coffee wastewater and environmental engineering. We started and finished a coffee roasting company. And Allison and I moved to Houston, Texas where I started working for Geosyntec Consultants. I wasn’t sure if I was going to come back … More 20. Starting Fresh
If there’s one thing I know about the coffee industry, it’s that we love being sustainable. We wear it like an industrial badge of honor. We have solar roasters, compostable cups, bio-degradable bags, community gardens, and my personal favorite, shops with rainwater catchment systems—but there are many times when I think we’ve missed the forest … More 19. Sustaining Sustainability
Do we? It’s been three months since SCAA’s Symposium and I have been reflecting on several statements I heard while in Seattle. There were several that struck me, but the primary one was that 85% of wet mills do not use proven water efficient technology, as emphasized by Paul Hicks’ keynote. In their book Freakonomics, … More 18. Do We Really Care About Water?
If the 2015 SCAA Symposium had to be summarized in one word, I would summarize it with the word, “data.” We heard a lot of and a lot about data and the need for data derived decisions (alliteration win). I got the impression from presenters that we’ve been flying a little blind when it comes … More 17. Thoughts on Symposium 2015: Data Dangers
SCAA Market analysis people are awesome and they make awesome infographics—I’m a sucker for infographics. Above is data presented at the 2015 SCAA Symposium. Now, I realize we’re not all data nerds who love our percentages and bar graphs, but take heart! The infographic is incredibly encouraging for all of us involved in Cincinnati coffee, … More 16. The Oncoming Flood of Specialty Coffee: What Does It Mean For Cincinnati?
