Is Organic Coffee Getting Scarce?

We came across an article today that made us a little sad. Hundreds of thousands of pounds of organic coffee are sitting in warehouses in Latin America, waiting silently and no one is coming. Growers all over Latin America are taking losses in sales because they can't fetch the higher price needed to cover the costs of natural pesticide use and smaller yields from non-chemical fertilizers, and they're ultimately switching back to chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Approximately 10% of organic growers have defected back to regular coffee growing, and 75% of the worlds organic coffee is coming from Latin America - Mexico to Costa Rica.
On the other side of the coin, Starbucks says they were only able to purchase organic beans about 3% of the time last year. And in response to questions as to why this was the case, Starbucks stated: "Our purchases of certified organic coffee are limited due to the limited quantities available worldwide and the constraints of the organic certification system for farmers." These constraints of organic farming include farmers absorbing the cost of organic farming for a minimum of three years before becoming certified, since agencies determined the soil must remain pesticide free for 3 years. Further, organic farms trap more carbon than their chemically managed counterparts and are thus better for the environment.
We need to decide if a healthier, safer product is worth the increased cost. And if it is, we should be demonstrating our commitment to a responsible product with our purchases, and urging organizations like Starbucks to do the same.
-Flora

Premarital Test Drives

This weekend I had coffee with some family and it was a really great time - lemme tell you my uncle can make a mean pot of coffee! Said uncle and I talked a lot about his ex-wife, how he felt in his marriage, how he feels now, premarital sex... It's interesting to hear the previous generation voice more progressive ideas than we're used to from them. When it comes to sex, his beliefs seem to be as liberal as mine.

My uncle's first wife was emotionally abused by her father. As well, she witnessed the physical/sexual abuse he subjected her sisters to. So in his words, sex represented everything that was awful to her. I can completely understand this because I was in the same position for a lot of years after being raped at 13. I've been lucky enough to recover but I know some don't. So her desire to avoid sex (among other things I'm sure) drove a wedge between them and ruined their marriage. I'm sure he wouldn't change things now, after raising two amazing children in the process. And now he's met and married a woman who he's extremely compatible and happy with.

But in the present moment, without thirty years of history holding someone to a choice, don't you think we would be glad to know, before taking vows, that our partner isn't on the same page? While I don't think outright promiscuity is the answer, I do think having sex before getting married is important, to establish compatibility. Unfortunately, even with friendship, shared interests and even physical attraction, the actual act of sex can sometimes fall flat between two people. Or sex-drives won't match up and someone wants it much more often than their partner. The problem is this: as with many circumstances, when the sex is good, it's only 10% of what's good, but when it's bad, it's 90% of what's bad. I hear this comment about a lot of things and I think it's because when something is going well, it is just a single component in a fulfilling life. But when it's going badly, that single component detracts from every other area. Anyone who's been in an unhappy or unsuccessful marriage knows just how much it can effect every other part of life.

In my teens and twenties, partly in reaction to being raped and partly because I think a lot of young insecure women go this route, I gave myself away to more than a few guys. Some I wish I could take back. But do I wish I had been able or chosen to wait till marriage? Absolutely not. I would rather know ahead of time that we have at least one less obstacle to overcome. Marriage isn't easy under the best circumstances.

So what do you think? I know that living in my town, a lot of people disagree with my opinion.

-Flora

Holy COFFEEgasm!!

We had a guest for coffee and she is DEFINITELY welcome any time. It was the Pastry Mama and let me tell you, that woman can create some tasty coffee treats! Today she made us coffee ice cream and it was so good that if I had to choose between that and an orgasm I would take... BOTH!

The second it touched my mouth I knew it was absolute perfection. The issue I have had in the past with coffee ice cream is that there is a bitter after taste, or that the taste of coffee is too overwhelming. The Pastry Mama used a recipe that called for less than a cup of already brewed coffee, so it enhanced the ice cream flavor without overpowering it. I highly recommend trying out this recipe!
The Pastry Mama has some thoughts about how she prepared the ice cream and how you might do it a little better!  She'll be posting those in the comments below.

The perfect breakfast!


- Merriweather

Brazillian Coffee Cookies

We found this recipe for Brazillian Coffee Cookies on cooks.com. So Merriweather pulled three Starbucks Via instant coffee packets out of her purse and we whipped up a batch! To see the full recipe, go to our recipes page. Over the next few weeks we'll be trying a few recipes, picking our favorites and then finally tweaking those a bit for better results!

When we first added the crystals it looked a lot like an oreo concoction. The dough was pale and creamy with tiny black flecks throughout. But soon it began to turn a deep rich coffee color as the crystals dissolved into the dough. It ended up resembling ginger-bread dough - very thick and firm. The recipe advised pressing with a greased and sugared fork or glass: we first went with a glass because it held onto and transferred more sugar crystals than the fork, but we ended up trying both.



The recipe advises 8-10 minutes cooking time but we did find even 8 minutes was far too long in our oven when using the dark non-stick cookie sheet. The bottoms were dark and hardened. When we switched to a glass pan we cooked for closer to the 10 minutes without any problems. And we do recommend using a reflective cookie sheet as opposed to the non-stick - this way we avoided the burnt sugar taste. Merriweather thought the cookies were delicious, but thought they were best as "dipping" cookie, especially with milk. She liked the strong but not overwhelming coffee flavor, and loved the chewy texture!





Depending on the look you're going for, and the amount of sugar you want, you can use the fork or the glass.



and of course, add hot coffee for the perfect breakfast treat!

Why Coffee?

Why did we choose coffee to accompany our controversy you ask? Well because everyone loves coffee right? I'm pretty sure it's right behind water for the most-consumed beverage on the planet.

According to coffee-statistics.com:

"The first coffee tree in the Western Hemisphere was brought from France to the Island of Martinique in the 1720's."

Well thank you France!

As for us we love everything about it! We love the smell as it brews, we love doctoring it up in all kinds of sweet ways, we love how it goes with anything you want for breakfast and we love how it stimulates the conversation each day!

I was wondering today if there is any feeling finer than that first sip of coffee in the morning? We want to know what you love about coffee.

-Flora

Welcome to Coffee and Controversy!

Our intention is to create a forum where people can step into the world of full self expression! We'll be here each day drinking coffee & chatting... and sometimes blogging our stimulating conversations. We welcome your comments, no matter what your opinion, but we hope everyone will be respectful of others opinions as well. Our articles aren't for the faint of heart, and probably shouldn't be shared with your children. We might say things you don't agree with but we invite you to open your hearts and minds and just try these ideas on for a minute, see how they feel. We want this to be a place where people can expand their opinions and belief systems and be open-minded and respectful of the beliefs of others. Be sure to check back daily as we'll be posting new stuff all the time. You can look forward to topics such as gay rights/marriage, global warming, our president & other leaders, marijuana v alcohol, affairs, divorce/custody, prostitution/stripping/pornography, autism and immunizations... We're here to shed light, give information and create powerful solutions in everyday life wherever we can! We'll also have coffee picks, an advice column, and eventually even some contests and prizes!
-Merriweather