The SloCrafted Life
By The SloCrafted Life
The SloCrafted LifeJun 10, 2019
S1 Ep12 with Teresa von Fuchs of Bellwether Coffee - Making Coffee Green Again and Solving Problems for the People in Businesses
Teresa von Fuchs heads up a team of innovators at Bellwether Coffee, a venture-backed startup aiming to make coffee shops more sustainable not only for the environment, but for the people who own and work in them. When we talk about sustainability in the coffee shop industry, we have to talk about financial sustainability of the business and the sustainability of workers within the industry, which means opportunity for advancement and increased salaries over time. That's why the Bellwether machine caught our eye. Not only are they roasting beans in a way that reduces environmental impact and creates a better experience for customers (fresher beans roasted on-site), but they also create ways for small coffee shops to weather the economic storms of small business ownership by creating a way for them to generate income outside of selling individual cups of coffee (by selling bags to customers and wholesalers), but they also allow the shop to create a way for baristas to advance within the company by learning to roast and developing new flavor profiles that expand the shop's offerings.
When we talk about how to solve the environmental problems of the world, we can't pretend those problems are divided from the economic stability or physical safety of the workers involved. Bellwether has created a solution that tackles all facets of the problem, not just one, because when the shop owner is empowered to be able to purchase un-roasted beans, they have a much wider and more affordable spread of options, and that allows them to support fair trade, environmentally-friendly sources that are often not available to them without a way to roast the beans - so this really creates positive ripples throughout the entire supply chain.
In this episode, you'll learn:
- 19:31 How Bellwether handles the overwhelm of coffee vendors that are available when a small shop begins roasting, so that they can feel confident they are supporting and buying from growers that treat their employees well and grow in sustainable ways
- 23:55 How we, as Americans, can solve problems starting here on our own soil, and how big of an impact the things we do here in America have on the environmental impact of the goods and services we consume (cafe operations are the single biggest contributor to the carbon footprint of a cup of coffee, and it is usually built upon low-wage unskilled labor)
- 28:00 Bellwether's name is rooted in the goal of lighting a new path, and how this company is trying to do just that
- 41:47 What can we as consumers of coffee to help change the industry for the better? How can we be better consumers and help fund the change we want to see in the world?
- 44:00 What if you want to bring your own mug to a cafe? What should you do to make sure you're being a conscious consumer and still not creating an unclean environment?
- 46:30 Are most coffee shops composting? How are they being limited by regulations as to how they can be green?
- 49:00 UnRavel's Zero Waste Cafe - and what they're doing that you can implement now
- 59:00 Social justice and race in coffee production and marketing
About Bellwether Coffee Roasters:
Bellwether Coffee Roasting offers coffee shop owners a unique way to scale their coffee offerings, without the environmental burden of traditional roasting styles. This venture-backed startup is changing how coffee gets roasted in both small stores and large chains, using new technology.
Links:
Find out more about Bellwether here: https://www.bellwethercoffee.com/about/
Find them on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bellwethercoffee/
S1 Ep11 with Henry Gordon-Smith of Agritecture - Who Do You Ask About How to Grow Food in Urban Areas? Meet the Consulting Firm Helping Grow Some of the Most Promising Startups in 2019
Links & Resources
Website
https://www.facebook.com/Agritecture/
https://www.instagram.com/agritecture/
Blog
https://www.agritecture.com/blog-feed
Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaqBO5iafuXqpJRmyr4LDrQ
Seeds And The City Podcast
The Next 100 Years by George Friedman
https://www.amazon.com/Next-100-Years-Forecast-Century/dp/0767923057
Locally Grown In Podcast
https://www.agritecture.com/locally-grown-in-podcast
Henry on Social
S1 Ep10 with Allie Kelly of The Ray - How One Southern Road Is Transforming the Transportation Industry in Very Eco-Conscious Way
S1 Ep9 with Mason of SeventhGeneration Solutions - How to Grow Your Own Food in Your Tiny Apartment
S1 Ep8 with Alesia Hall of Sea Witch Botanicals - How Many Ways Can Your Business Lean in to Doing What’s Right?
Resources and Links:
Website- https://seawitchbotanicals.com/
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/naturemissesyou
Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/seawitchbotanicals/
Certifications:
https://sustainableconnections.org/
Charities:
https://www.onepercentfortheplanet.org/
https://www.conservationnw.org/
Natural/Eco-friendly beauty and household brands
https://www.seventhgeneration.com
Books & Podcasts mentioned:
https://www.amazon.com/Case-against-Fragrance-Kate-Grenville-ebook/dp/B01MDN68TR
S1 Ep7 with Callee of Bestowed Essentials & A Hippie in a Van - How a #VanLifer Created a Zero Waste Ecommerce Business
S1 Ep6 with Nicole Flood of Flood Clothing - Making an Empire Out of Scraps: How to Transform Your Heirlooms into Wearable Art
S1 Ep5 with Jessie Artigue of Season Everyday - Making Life Flavorful: The Richness of Combining Everything You Love into a Modern, Mindful Life
S1 Ep4 with Michael Snider-Held “Ace” - Why a Michelin Chef Abandoned Cooking to Build Mushroom Gardens on Waterfront Properties
Links & Resources
Fungi perfecti. ~ Paul stamets
Paul Stamets- mushrooms as medicine
Lake way tilapia - Where Michael gets his fish
skateboards
https://www.skateboltsd.com/tornado
S1 Ep3 with Joyce & Melissa of Pink Salt Cuisine - Making Sustainability Palatable for the Masses: Vegan & Zero-Waste Events that Inspire
S1 Ep 2 with Eric McCool - How Do We Live These Values #IRL? Permaculture and Foraging When You Have a Family to Support
Resources & Links
Email Eric: EricMcCool@gmail.com
"Permaculture Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability" by David Holmgren
Ep1 Jon Parr - There’s No Such Thing as "Away": How Aquaponics Forces Us to Confront The Fact of Closed Loop Systems
Resources & Links
Sylvia Bernstein – The Aquaponic Gardening Community. http://aquaponicgardening.ning.com
Kelly Slater Instagram account - “No Such Thing as Away.” https://www.instagram.com/kellyslater/
Ken Armstrong – Ouroboros Aquaponic Farm - https://www.ouroborosfarms.com
“Short History of Everything” - Bill Bryson https://www.amazon.com/Short-History-Nearly-Everything/dp/076790818X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1548355557&sr=8-1&keywords=bill+bryson+short+history+of+everything
SchoolGrown http://schoolgrown.org