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Coffee is native to Ethiopia

While there are competing claims regarding coffee’s origin story, there is strong evidence to suggest that coffee originated in the southwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Hundreds, if not thousands, of distinct varieties of coffee grow wild in the Ethiopian forests today, many of them unidentified. This genetic diversity is vitally important for the future of coffee.

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All major styles of tea originate as leaves of the same plant

Camellia sinensis is the plant from which we gather all tea in tea production today. The different styles of tea: green tea, oolong tea, black tea, etc., result from different processing approaches after the leaves are plucked. Camellia sinensis is divided into two main varieties: Camellia sinensis var. sinensis and Camellia sinensis var. assamica.

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Coffee plants can grow to be more than 45' tall

Growers in much of the coffee producing world prune trees to about five feet for easier harvesting, which is completed by hand on the vast majority of coffee farms.

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Processing methods dramatically affect the flavor of coffee

“Processing” in coffee production refers to all of the steps that are completed to transform freshly picked coffee fruit into “green coffee” that is ready to be roasted. The three most common approaches are the wet process (or “washed”), the dry process (or “natural”), and the honey process. Depending on the method, flavors can be super clean, densely fruited, sometimes even wild and funky!

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Coffee is the seed of a tropical fruit

The roasted coffee “beans” that we are familiar with in consuming countries originate as the seeds of a small fruit (the coffee “cherry”) that is similar to a cranberry in size and grows on small shrub-like trees near the equator.

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Most specialty coffees and fine teas are handpicked

A staggering amount of human labor goes into coffee and tea production. Pickers, whether hired to harvest coffee cherries or to pluck tea leaves, are absolutely essential to the specialty industry, and they have often been paid very low wages for back-breaking labor. A sustainable and ethical supply chain requires that the well-being of these individuals be factored in the cost of the beverages we enjoy

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Coffee was used in Religious Ceremonies

Some of the first people to regularly enjoy coffee and tea were religious devotees who employed the stimulating effects of these beverages to maintain focus during extended evening prayer sessions.

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The coffee cherry fruit includes five layers that surround two seeds, each of which must be carefully and gently removed by coffee producers in order to make great tasting coffee.

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Most coffees grow between 3500 and 6000 feet above sea level!

In the tropical warmth of the places where coffee grows, the cool nights at these elevations allow for slower development for the fruit, yielding great sweetness and complexity

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