The Planet and Those Who Live on It:

The suppliers of our coffee were specifically chosen based on the treatment of their workers and how they produce their coffee. Monte Alegre has a certificate of association in Sustainability with CECAFE (the Brazilian coffee exporters’ council). 

At Monte Alegre, the labour force is provided with full medical care, including having a doctor, nurse and safety engineer on the farm. There is a school on the farm, and the older children have free transport to the high school in the town. All the water on the farm is drinking water. It provides day-care for 120 children in the nearby villages and makes monthly donation of milk etc. to the surrounding hospitals and old age homes.

In terms of the production of the coffee, Monte Alegre's sustainable farming is practiced throughout its coffee production; Apart from other methods, they use intercropping, water management and wind-breakers. The coffee milling is also eco-friendly.

All the cups and lids used for the coffee sales will be bought from “The Green Life Store” and so are 100% biodegradable and compostable. We are also going to encourage customers to bring their own cups by stating that we will donate R1 to a Cape Town based NGO, GOLD (Generation of Leaders Discovered), for every customer that uses their own cup. Encouraging the customers to use their own cups would reduce the number of cups used and therefore our impact on the environment.

A Little About GOLD:

GOLD is a Cape Town-based NGO, which runs a three year peer education programme equipping adolescents with skills to positively influence their peers and younger children. It won the Commonwealth Education Good Practice Award in 2010 (www.goldpe.org.za).