Bengaluru, India : Sustainability is one of the critical concerns in the global coffee industry and adopting a circular economy and putting the livelihood of the farmer at the core of the business model is the solution – that was the underlying message on the second day of the World Coffee Conference (WCC) 2023 which is presently underway at Bengaluru.
The second day of the conference saw some of the most respected leaders and innovators from the global coffee industry come together to discuss and deliberate on the future of the coffee sector and do a deep dive into the theme of the global conference – Sustainability through Circular Economy and Regenerative Agriculture.
Celebrated economist, entrepreneur and author of the book ‘The Blue Economy’ Prof. Gunter Pauli emphasized on the immediate need to put livelihood of the coffee farmers at the core of the business model. “The industry focusses too much on core business and core competence. No! The livelihood of farmers and ethics should be at the core of the business model” he stressed. One needs to view the ecosystem as a whole he added and look at coffee through a different lens – not only as a drink but as a bean with a lot more potential.
“The coffee husk can be used to farm mushrooms. Its successfully being done in some countries and aids in growing nutritious foods while also creating livelihood for thousands of farmers. Coffee waste can also be used to create functional products like textiles which absorb odour due to the presence of coffee”, explained Pauli tugging onto his jacket which was made with a fabric of which 7% is coffee waste.
