Nothing beats a hot steaming cup of coffee to awaken the nerves and stimulate tired senses. While a cup of Joe may tempt relentlessly, many environmentally conscious people would reject the purchase of over-the-counter, mass produced coffee from your traditional store. For good reason: many of the manufacturing methods used to make non-organic coffee have been proven to damage the environment through toxins, pesticides, and fertilizers used throughout production.
In order for organic coffee to claim its title and have seals of approval throughout the States, it has to follow a set of guidelines established by the US Department of Agriculture that regulates organic production. Organic coffee must stray clear of synthetic pesticides and its farmers must have crop rotation systems in place to prevent soil nutrients from depleting along with sufficient pest control. Given the nature of the organic coffee production process, its market is steadily climbing in the States with total sales reaching close to 90 million in 2005, a nearly 50 percent jump from 2004. In addition, organic coffee is being sold by more specialty coffee firms than ever, a testament to its growing popularity.
Organic coffee continues to remain a premium product at extravagant prices. Currently, a 12 oz. bag of dark roasted shade grown fair trade organic coffee can climb upwards of $12. Light roasted organic coffee goes for about $3 less, depending on the store you’re buying it from. Adding to organic coffee’s exclusivity is the size of the world organic coffee market which remains mired at less than 1 percent in all of the major coffee consuming countries. Despite its status, this item continues to be diverse, offering organic coffee products that include coffee sodas, decaffeinated, caffeinated, and flavored coffees. All in all, remember that organic coffee is a safe alternative to the mass produced, environmentally unconscious coffees made today.
With the explosion in coffee house culture across the
So you just had a raspberry nutmeg latte? Now this might sound like a kind of dessert that would play havoc with your diet but don’t panic, this is actually a relatively low fat way to enjoy these delicious flavors.
Syrups are available in a number of varieties from vanilla, toffee, gingerbread and hazelnut, to a number of fruity types. Although it may seem that these flavored syrups have only just arrived with the advent of coffee shop franchises such as Starbucks, they have actually been used in high end coffee establishments for years.
The best brands of syrup are made using high quality natural ingredients. They are made by taking the base ingredient, be it a spice, nut or fruit, and heating them vigorously with water and sugar to make a concentrated syrup. They do not contain any fat or cholesterol, other than that found naturally in the base ingredient, and so are not going to affect your diet. The sugar might not be so good for your teeth however, so if you become a flavored coffee addict you will want to clean them frequently. Check the bottle of syrup at your local coffee house to be sure that the flavor you choose uses only natural and high quality ingredients.
With the recent emphasis on low-carb and sugar free diets, suppliers have begun to introduce sugar free syrups to mix with your skinny latte. By using sugar free sweeteners, many of the old favorite flavors will still be available in sugar free, with no reduction in the taste. Vanilla, Irish cream, amaretto, chocolate and raspberry are available without the extra sugar. As well as a response to low sugar diets, these syrups are also a result of the increasing incidence of diabetes in our society caused by excess sugar intake.
