Page 39 - APPD_Something's_Brewing_Nov/Dec'24

Sustainability

Part six concludes Liam’s work experience Cafeology
ISSUES FACED AT ROBERTO’S FARM
at Roberto’s farm. However, business
continues apace, and here are some of the of water used
challenges for Roberto and his family going dramatically. Water usage
forward.
is one of the many things
The desire to be more that must be reported
and audited frequently.
sustainable

Costa Rican coffee is some of, if not the most, The furnace, used to heat
the air for mechanically
sustainable coffee globally. Despite Roberto drying the coffee, is a
wanting to be sustainable, he must adhere to source of pollution that
the strict environmental laws regardless. For must also be regulated
example, water usage and treatment are and monitored. You might
highly regulated, with monthly reports think Roberto uses wood
required by the Ministry of Health and ICAFE as fuel but this would lead
during harvest season.
to increased
All of the water in Costa Rica is drinkable but deforestation (the nearby
water is still a precious resource not only for area is protected too!)
life but for coffee production. Pulping, if you and is relatively
aren’t careful, can use vast quantities of water expensive.
and leave behind polluted water that will
leach into ground water. To solve this, the husks
from sample milling are
At the wet mill, Roberto mainly uses honey- used as fuel for the
process coffee which uses less water than the furnace. This (waste
washed process. Moreover, the pulper product) is bagged up and
continuously recycles water back through the stored until it is needed.
system rather than continuously pumping in The small surface area of
fresh water. This helps to reduce the amount the husks makes them a

great fuel source that
burns efficiently and
cleanly. In order to be
allowed to burn the
husks, the Ministry of
Health had to analyse and
accredit the emissions.

All Costa Rican coffee is

shade grown and thereby NOVEMBER/DECEMBER. 2024 | ISSUE 39
the farms form an
agroecosystem, meaning
natural ecosystems are
modified for human
agriculture (coffee
A side view of the pulper
farming) in harmony with
nature.

www.beveragestandardsassociation.co.uk