Go Green with coffee

It's the world's most commonly traded commodity after crude oil.  57 percent of American adults drink it everyday.

We're talking about coffee and when it comes to the environment, coffee connoisseurs have some big cups to fill.  
"Any drink, a smoothie or a latte, if you bring in your own re-usable mug we cut you a deal on that.  We're trying to cut down on waste," says Chuck Cerankosky.  He is the General Manager of Java's Cafe on Gibbs Street in Rochester.

He says, many customers take them up on their offer.  " I can nurse my coffee for four, maybe 3 hours instead of coming back here every hour to get another cup which is what I was doing and my wallet was getting thin," says customer Herb Smith.  

At Java's they take about 1,000 orders a day. So any time they can save a plastic fork or a styrofoam cup, they do.  But it's not just what the coffee is in that makes a difference.  Some types of coffee are also better for the environment.  "We offer at least one fair trade organic selection every day," says Cerankosky.

Organic coffee beans are harvested without the use of harmful chemicals and pesticides.

"Coffee is such a worldwide crop, such a commodity, buying organic coffee promotes the idea that land use to grow all of those beans is not being treated with those synthetic and petroleum based pesticides and fertilizers which are then going to seap into the soil or runoff into the water supplies," he adds. 

You may also want to look for the fair trade seal.  That certification means the product meets strict social, economic, and environmental standards.

Starbucks is North America's largest purchaser of fair trade certified coffee.  In 2004, Starbucks bought about 5 million pounds of fair trade coffee.  In 2005 the franchise upped that to 11.5 million pounds.