This week, the global community honoured Earth Day 2025. For the coffee community, it is a moment to reflect on the industry’s journey towards sustainability. Coffee, a daily ritual for many, has been at the heart of environmental discussions due to its significant ecological footprint. Yet, amidst challenges, there have been commendable strides towards a more sustainable brew.
This year’s Earth Day theme, “Our Power, Our Planet,” points out our collective responsibility in transitioning to renewable energy sources. The goal is ambitious: to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030. This initiative isn’t just about energy; it’s about empowering communities, safeguarding our environment, and ensuring a sustainable future for all.
This theme resonates deeply in the coffee sector. From cultivation to consumption, every step in the coffee supply chain offers opportunities to embrace renewable energy and sustainable practices. Aligning our operations with the principles of renewable energy reduces our carbon footprint and contributes to the broader global effort to fight climate change.
This article explores challenges and progress in the coffee sector, highlighting how the "Our Power, Our Planet" spirit can inspire a shift towards sustainability and equity.
The environmental challenges
Coffee is grown in tropical regions where the ecosystems are considered fragile due to other human pressures. The production poses significant environmental challenges, particularly water usage, deforestation, and carbon emissions. For instance, producing a single cup of coffee can require up to 140 litres of water, considering the entire supply chain from cultivation to consumption. This substantial water footprint contributes to water scarcity, especially in regions where coffee is grown and water resources are limited.
Shifting from traditional shade-grown to sun-grown coffee farming and expanding to new areas has further led to significant deforestation and environmental degradation. In Central America alone, over 2.5 million acres of forest have been cleared for coffee plantations. Sun-grown methods involve removing shade trees and clearing forest canopies to increase the planting density of coffee plants. The deforestation diminishes biodiversity, disrupts ecosystems, and reduces carbon sequestration, thereby worsening climate change. Moreover, sun-grown coffee farming requires increased use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides due to the lack of natural shade, leading to soil degradation and water contamination.
Coffee production is resource-intensive and contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Most emissions occur during cultivation, processing, and transportation, with farming and processing alone accounting for up to 68% of coffee's climate impact. Transportation, especially from tropical farms to consumers in developed countries, adds approximately 15% to the total emissions. Additional emissions arise from roasting, packaging, brewing, and waste disposal. As global coffee demand is projected to triple by 2050, mitigating these emissions is crucial. Strategies include optimizing transportation logistics, adopting sustainable farming practices, and enhancing energy efficiency throughout the supply chain.
As global demand for coffee continues to rise, the challenge remains to balance production needs with the preservation of these fragile ecosystems.
The changing climate
Coffee cultivation is inherently sensitive to climate variations such as rising temperatures and unpredictable weather patterns. Reported impacts are mostly negative and include a decline in coffee yield and quality, loss of optimal areas to grow coffee with a significant impact on major coffee-producing countries, and an increase in the distribution of pests and diseases that directly influence coffee farming. Further, projections indicate that without intervention, suitable land for coffee cultivation could decrease substantially by 2050. In Brazil, one of the largest coffee producers, adverse climatic conditions have led to significant crop losses, driving coffee prices to their highest levels in years. Similarly, in Guatemala, droughts and coffee leaf rust disease have decreased the 2024/2025 coffee crop, challenging the livelihoods of local farmers.
The progress
Despite these hurdles, the coffee industry has made notable progress by adopting innovative practices, embracing transparent sourcing, investing in farmer education, and corporate commitments. For example, the Global Coffee Platform notes that, in 2022, over 70% of reported coffee purchases went through rigorous assessments, reflecting a significant shift towards responsible procurement. This was an increase from the 30-50% of total production of certified coffees in countries like Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Honduras, and Costa Rica. Transparent sourcing practices, such as direct trade and blockchain technology, are transforming the coffee industry by enabling consumers to trace the journey of their coffee from farm to cup. The level of detail provides insights into the working conditions of farmers, environmental impacts, and the economic fairness of the trade, enabling consumers to make informed choices and support sustainable and ethical production practices
Investing in farmer education, innovative practices, such as regenerative agriculture, and policies as the European Union's Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), have also gained traction in the recent past. The EUDR, which mandates that coffee and other commodities imported into the EU must be deforestation-free, came into force in 2023 and is being implemented. On the other hand, regenerative agriculture focuses on restoring soil health, increasing biodiversity, and improving water management, thereby enhancing the resilience of coffee farms to climate change.
Lastly, the journey toward a sustainable coffee industry is a collective endeavour, requiring collaboration across the entire supply chain. Global initiatives like the Sustainable Coffee Challenge unite stakeholders—from farmers and cooperatives to roasters and retailers—to set and achieve sustainability goals. These programs aim to galvanize commitments to action from many actors around the world, leveraging significant financial resources to promote sustainable practices in coffee production.
Conclusion
As we reflect on the environmental challenges facing our planet, it's evident that the coffee industry stands at a pivotal crossroads. The challenges posed by climate change, deforestation, and resource-intensive practices are significant. However, the industry's proactive steps, such as embracing sustainable sourcing, investing in farmer education, and adopting innovative agricultural practices, offer a promising path forward. Consumers can drive demand for responsible practices and foster a more sustainable coffee industry by supporting brands that prove implementation.
References
1. Barreto Peixoto, J.A., Silva, J.F., Oliveira, M.B.P. and Alves, R.C., 2023. Sustainability issues along the coffee chain: From the field to the cup. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 22(1), pp.287-332.
2. Brommer, E., Stratmann, B., & Quack, D. (2011). Environmental impacts of different methods of coffee preparation. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 35(2), 212–220. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1470-6431.2010.00971.x
3. Earth Day Network. (2025). Earth Day 2025. https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2025/
4. European Coffee Federation. (n.d.). Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality Program. https://www.ecf-coffee.org/sustainability/nespresso-aaa-sustainable-quality-program/
5. European Commission. (n.d.). Deforestation Regulation Implementation. https://green-forum.ec.europa.eu/deforestation-regulation-implementation_en
6. Global Coffee Platform. (2023). GCP Snapshot Report 2022. https://www.globalcoffeeplatform.org/latest/2023/gcp-snapshot-report-2022/#report-facts
7. Harvey, C.A., Pritts, A.A., Zwetsloot, M.J. et al. Transformation of coffee-growing landscapes across Latin America. A review. Agron. Sustain. Dev. 41, 62 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-021-00712-0
8. Killian, B., Rivera, L., Soto, M., & Navichoc, D. (2013). Carbon footprint across the coffee supply chain: The case of Costa Rican coffee. Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology, 3, 151–175.
9. Komar, O. (2006). Ecology and conservation of birds in coffee plantations: A critical review. Bird Conservation International, 16, 1–23.
10. Nab, Carmen & Maslin, Mark. (2020). Life cycle assessment synthesis of the carbon footprint of Arabica coffee: Case study of Brazil and Vietnam conventional and sustainable coffee production and export to the United Kingdom. Geo: Geography and Environment. 7. 10.1002/geo2.96.
11. Pham, Y., Reardon-Smith, K., Mushtaq, S. et al. The impact of climate change and variability on coffee production: a systematic review. Climatic Change 156, 609–630 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-019-02538-y
12. Potts, J., Lynch, M., Wilkings, A., Huppé, G. A., Cunningham, M., & Voora, V. (2014). Coffee market. In R. Ilnyckyj, D. Holmes, & E. Rickert (Eds.), The state of sustainability initiatives review 2014: Standards and the green economy (pp. 155–182). International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).
13. Sporchia, Fabio & Caro, Dario & Bruno, Morena & Patrizi, Nicoletta & Marchettini, Nadia & Pulselli, Federico. (2023). Estimating the impact on water scarcity due to coffee production, trade, and consumption worldwide and a focus on EU. Journal of Environmental Management. 327. 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.116881.
Comments