Sustainability
Building a sustainable business is central to Counter Culture Coffee's mission. We strive to be leaders in sustainable coffee and combine our commitment to buying high-quality coffee with respect for the natural environment.
Since the beginning, we have sought coffee that not only tastes good but also does good—for our local community and for all of the communities around the world where our partners grow coffee—and we continue to raise our standards as we make progress. Whether through our our Counter Culture Direct Trade Certification or our projects aimed at reducing our environmental footprint, our day-to-day decisions reflect our dedication to real environmental, social, and fiscal sustainability.
Our vision is to pursue coffee perfection by creating partnerships that ensure prosperity for all people, improving the natural environment and operating efficiently to minimize our environmental impact.
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| Sustainability News and Events | ||
Ndaroini Receives Counter Culture Direct Trade Certification
10-19-09
We’re excited to announce that our fresh Kenya Single Lot from Ndaroini in Nyeri, Kenya, has just qualified for Counter Culture Direct Trade Certification (CCDTC). The first of our Kenya Single Lots to meet all CCDTC criteria of communication, price, quality, and transparency, this lot of Ndaroini was purchased directly via the “second window” from the Gikanda grower cooperative. For many years, Kenya’s small-scale, artisan farmers were required by law to tender their annual coffee harvests to a weekly auction in Nairobi, where coffees are sold to the highest bidder. Traditionally, most of these lots are bought by exporters, who then mix them into proprietary blends. Even so, we have for years gone directly to the bidders to secure pure, uncut auction lots that represent the most authentic, delicious expressions of Kenyan coffee. Recently, however, a “second window” opened in Kenya up to allow quality- and relationship-focused buyers like us to form direct partnerships with grower communities and collaborate on ground-level quality development and direct purchasing. As evidenced in the cup, our direct work with Ndaroini has yielded rich rewards.
Ndaroini, which resonates with classic Kenyan flavors of blackcurrant, tropical fruit, and dark chocolate, represents not only the astonishing skill and craft of Kenya’s coffee farmers, but also the tremendous quality made possible by direct, transparent relationships between coffee partners.
Best,
Mark
