Essay by Eric Worrall

The Green Ministry of Fun at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi has scolded coffee drinkers for ignoring the climate impact of their beverage.

Here’s how your cup of coffee contributes to climate change

Published: January 6, 2023 8.04am AEDT

• Luciano Rodrigues Viana Doctorant en sciences de l’environnement, Département des sciences fondamentales, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)
• Charles Marty Adjunct professor, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)
• Jean-François Boucher Professeur, Eco-consulting, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)
• Pierre-Luc Dessureault Assistant researcher, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)

Global coffee consumption has been increasing steadily for almost 30 years. With a daily average consumption of 2.7 cups of coffee per person, coffee is now Canada’s most popular drink. It is estimated that around two billion cups of coffee are consumed daily worldwide.

This demand has led to considerable diversification in the ways of preparing coffee as well, including the creation of coffee capsules. The popularity of these capsules has divided the public opinion because this method of preparation, which uses single-use individual packaging, is harmful to the environment.

…

The life cycle of coffee

The pollution resulting from the preparation of coffee at home is just the tip of the iceberg. 

Before you can enjoy a cup of coffee, it goes through several steps, starting from the agricultural production of the coffee beans, their transport, the roasting and grinding of the beans, right up to the heating of the water for the coffee and the washing of the cups it is poured in. 

These steps, common to all modes of coffee preparation, consume resources and emit greenhouse gases (GHG).

…

If you live in a province or country with carbon-intensive electricity production, not using the coffee maker’s hot plate and rinsing the cup with cold water can help reduce carbon footprint.

..

Read more: https://theconversation.com/heres-how-your-cup-of-coffee-contributes-to-climate-change-196648

I already checked, it is not April 1st. Maybe the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi environment department has been hitting the coffee a little harder than normal.

My 5yr old espresso machine probably ticks all the boxes when it comes to emitting CO2, except for the hot plate, but it sure makes a lovely cup of coffee. I think I’ll defer giving up coffee to save the planet until after I’m dead.