Coffee School - Organic Coffee Growers:
- Improve and maintain soil fertility through composting and other natural methods
such as the planting of nitrogen-fixing tree or applications of animal or "green" manures.
- Use ecological methods to control pests and disease rather than
chemical pesticides or fungicides.
- Provide much needed refuge for migratory birds and other wildlife.
- Protect plant diversity by propagating different species of native trees.
- Minimize soil erosion and compaction by "reforesting" or maintaining forested areas.
- Provide economic security in rural regions by offering jobs at
labor-intensive times such as harvest, and by growing a variety of
useful food crops.
- Minimize pollution from coffee processing wastewater by reducing water
use, recirculating water whenever possible, and employing anaerobic
digestion systems to clean water after use.
- Follow stringent organic standards in order to produce a quality crop
and to meet organic certification requirements.
- Protect and further a traditional agriculture, building on centuries-old
knowledge of farming in harmony with nature.
