Sustainability in the Coffee Industry: From Dream to Permanent Crisis
The coffee industry has centuries of history, but the story of specialty coffee and its sustainability is much more recent. When Erna Knutsen coined the term in 1973, the intention was to recognize exceptional coffees, differentiate them from commercial coffee, and offer more transparency to consumers. Over time, organizations like the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA, founded in 1982) and the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) joined the effort. The idea was to create an industry where education, product quality, and direct connections between producers and buyers would generate benefits for everyone.
Programs like the Cup of Excellence brought that vision to life: auctions of exceptional coffees, long-term business relationships, and premium prices based on quality. The goal was for coffee to be more than just a commodity. Instead, it was marketed as a differentiated product whose value was recognized from origin and more sustainable than commercial coffee.
Yet today, one might ask…
Has the life of the ones producing the coffee really improved?
The Reality of Sustainability for Coffee Producers
The answer, according to many experts and producers: not enough. Despite fairs, competitions, cupping protocols, and training courses, the imbalance in the value chain remains deep.
An unequal chain: Profit margins grow at the end of the chain (roasters, distributors, cafés), while origin incomes stagnate or decline.
Dependence on the C-market: Even specialty coffee is tied to commodity market fluctuations, where prices often do not reflect the real cost of production.
Unsustainable: For most of modern coffee history, producers have been paid below production costs. It is common to hear farmers say that “it’s no longer worth growing coffee.” This causes the next generation, seeing their parents’ economic struggles, to migrate or pursue other professions. The risk is clear: abandoned farms and loss of coffee diversity because the business itself is not sustainable.
More events, less impact: The 2017 merger of the SCAA and SCAE expanded the reach of fairs and conferences, but also created a perception of higher transactional focus: more stands and networking, fewer tangible actions to improve sustainability at origin.
Expensive distractions: The introduction of the Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) has been seen by some as a distraction, or perhaps another way to make money. A CVA course can cost $380 even in producing countries, an amount equivalent to weeks of income for many farmers.
Disconnected NGOs and associations: Many non-profits fail to act as a real “market bridge.” The SCAA, despite its global influence, does not facilitate direct trade between producers and buyers.
The Elephant in the Room: Prices in the Coffee Industry
If there is one thing many experts agree on, it is that talking about quality, traceability, or innovation is not enough if the price producers receive does not cover their costs and leave a decent margin to live on. A product cannot be sustainable if the people working on it cannot earn a living wage and only survive instead.
Trade associations should facilitate direct meetings between producers and roasters. Models like Let’s Talk Coffee, where roasters fund producer participation, show that when both sides sit at the same table, lasting and sustainable collaborations emerge beyond a single purchase.
Furthermore, instead of focusing resources on assessments and competitions, efforts should go into building a market that economically values producer sustainability. Initiatives like World Coffee Research, which funds research by charging a small fee per pound of coffee, demonstrate that solutions can be integrated without relying solely on donations.
The Multifaceted Crisis of Coffee Sustainability
The coffee crisis is not only economic: it is closely linked to climate change and the lack of public policies protecting producers, and solutions require multiple actors.
Clear and shared data: The link between climate and economy must be explained honestly and in accessible language. It is not enough for this information to circulate only at specialized conferences. It must reach all actors in the value chain.
Role of governments: Resuming support mechanisms, such as minimum price agreements from the International Coffee Organization (ICO), could provide some stability.
Recognition of urgency: The industry must accept that time is running out. Many small roasters already operate on near-zero margins due to tariffs and inflation. If they cannot pay more for coffee, and producers cannot receive less, the whole system is at risk.
Focus on what matters: Less energy spent on debates like the CVA or festivals where producers cannot attend, and much more on ensuring that coffee-farming families can earn a living, translating directly into more sustainability in the coffee chain.
At A Coffee & A Story We Believe…
Behind every kilo of coffee, there are years of work, tough decisions, and a constant struggle against a system that, until now, has not fairly rewarded those who make it possible.
Specialty coffee can be part of the solution for improving coffee sustainability, but only if we refocus on what really matters: making coffee cultivation a viable future for the next generations. At A Coffee & A Story, we have met people who think similarly. To mention two sources: the Map It Forward podcast and Karl Wienhold’s book.
It is not about telling pretty stories about farms and anaerobic processes with tasting notes only a few can savor. It is about real sustainability projects for everyone. To achieve this, we must speak clearly about the price we pay for every cup.