Consumer Demand for Organic Food

Price (whether the market likes to admit it or not) really is controlled by consumer demand for products and services. When demand falls, price also falls. When demand increases, price also increases. It’s a simple formula that isn’t very easily manipulated (although the oil companies are doing a pretty good job of manipulating it at the present, but that’s another article). We’re talking about organic food and the demand for it.

Today all health food stores and most herbal medicine stores carry some organic food items. Big chain grocery stores are also beginning to carry a line of organic products as well. The reason that more retailers are carrying organic products is because more consumers are demanding organic products. And, of course, the price is growing up. Price is going up because demand has increased and supply has not. There is less product desired by more people. Big demand + small supply = high prices.

I also like to think that people are just getting smarter when it comes to food choices. We’ve become a weight-conscious nation. You can hardly find a person who doesn’t know what calories, carbohydrates, and proteins are. Even little kids know the difference between saturated fat and unsaturated fat. Now the population is becoming more and more aware of how the food on grocery store shelves is produced. The problems with contaminated products from China raised awareness, I think, and that’s a good thing. (Not the contaminated products, but the awareness of the contaminated products.)

There is a rule, however, that says that what goes up must also come down. As more and more people demand organically produced food, more and more producers of food will choose to grow their products using organic methods. As more supply becomes available, the prices will go

down. It’s going to take a while, though.


Can Organic Food Help Depression?

“Food can have an immediate and lasting effect on mental health and behavior because of the way it affects the structure and function of the brain.” That is one of the statements in a recently released study concerning the effect of food on the mind.

Think about the things that go into our bodies every day; air, water, and food. Our bodies use these elements for our very existence. The body wouldn’t last long if any of these basic requirements weren’t met.

* Air: We know that inhaling smoke and other pollutants is detrimental to our physical as well as our mental health.

* Water: We also know that there are many diseases that can be contracted from unsafe drinking water, and some of these diseases can cause brain damage, among other things.

* Food: If air and water can affect our physical and mental well-being, then don’t you think that food might also affect our physical as well as our mental well-being? It stands to reason!

There are all kinds of “stuff” in food that the body uses as fuel. Sometimes we eat food just because it “tastes good.” But the food choices that we make can and do affect our brain function, and there really isn’t much doubt about that one. There is a much higher incidence of depression in countries where little fish is eaten. Scientists also know that schizophrenia is linked to a deficiency of antioxidant vitamins and essential fats. Yes, food affects the brain. What’s IN and ON that food also affects the brain.

The government has established “safe” levels of toxic chemicals that are allowed on traditionally grown fruits and vegetables. It has also established “safe” levels of antibiotics and growth hormones that are “safe” in meat products. The question is, safe for whom, and how much is too much? I think I’ll stick with organically produced meat!

Panama Organic Coffee Brands

Some of the world’s best organic coffee comes from Panama. Panama mountain grown organic coffee b enefits from the rich volcanic soil at the base of the extinct 11,000 foot volcano, Volcan Baru. A frequent cloud cover at high altitudes and forested slopes provide an ideal location for shade grown coffee. Whether you are looking for coffee for individual consumption or if you would like Panama wholesale organic coffee , look to the country on the isthmus joining the Americas for excellent coffee. There are a number of Panama organic coffee brands. The easiest way to find out about and to receive any of the excellent Panama organic coffee brands is to contact Panamá Natural Organic Coffee for availability and pricing.

Organic Coffee from Panama

The Cordillera Central of Panama, its mountainous spine, is an extension of the mountains of the North. Here, in the tropics, the highlands are referred to as the land of eternal spring. The elevation provides a relief from the coastal heat but, because Panama is in the tropics, it does not get cold. The highlands of Panama are ideal for growing coffee. The highlands around Boquete and Volcan in the province of Chiriquí have rich volcanic soil and a coffee growing culture going back a century. Small family owned farms grow coffee on the slopes of the mountains and hills of Panama. Many of these coffee farms produce shade grown coffee as growers have left much of the natural habitat in place. In addition, many growers have used sustainable growing techniques for coffee for years. Thus it was a small step for many to receive Bio Latina organic coffee certification . Bio Latina certifies producers and processors in behalf of the United States Department of Agriculture, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, and agricultural authorities in Canada and the European Union. The highlands of Panama can be your source for individual bags of coffee or large shipments of Panama wholesale organic coffee.

Panama Organic Coffee Brands

If you are looking for a cup with great organic coffee aroma and healthy organic coffee antioxidants consider Panama organic coffee. There are many available organic coffee growers and processors. If your interest is in green coffee beans, Panama wholesale organic coffee may be for you. If your interest is in processed, bagged, and labeled organic coffee that is always an option. Here is a list of Panama organic coffee brands:

  • Asociación de Caficultores Orgánicos Ngöbe Ascon
  • Finca Dos Jefes
  • Finca El Remedio – Ama de Casa
  • Finca Ramon Arauz
  • Finca San Miguel de La Montaña
  • Finca Señor Ramón Arauz
  • Hacienda Barbara Jaramillo
  • Hacienda La Esperanza
  • Leap Of Faith Farms, Inc
  • Los Lajones Estate Coffee S.A.

In general you will need to speak Spanish in order to contact these folks so, if you are interested it will be easier to work through a local, bilingual company, to buy one of the excellent Panama organic coffee brands. If you interest is in purchasing either coffee for your own consumption or Panama wholesale organic coffee in bulk please feel free to contact us at Panamá Natural Organic Coffee by way of www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org today.

Are You What You Eat?

That old saying, “You are what you eat” has been around for a while. I am kind of inclined to believe that there is a lot to the concept.

Our food supply is filled with toxic substances. I know, I know. The government has established safety guidelines for how much of the toxic substances we can safely eat. Wait! EATING any toxic substances doesn’t sound all that safe to me. When I read that the levels of “safety” were determined for grown men who weighed at least 154 pounds, I was shocked. What about all of the people who are smaller? Are the same levels “safe” for women? When was the last time you saw a little kid that weighed 154 pounds of either sex? Are these “guidelines” relevant – much less effective? If we really are what we eat, right now most Americans would be toxic.

What is called “conventional” food production techniques include the use of chemical fertilizers (some of which end up IN the food), toxic pesticides (some of which end up ON the food) and drugs like antibiotics and growth hormones. Food that is processed and packaged is filled with artificial flavor enhancers and preservatives, many of which are known to be unsafe at high levels of consumption. Have you ever looked at the list of ingredients on packaged food? Good grief! I can’t even pronounce most of those words. What ARE they?

Well, if we really are what we eat, all of those things are us. They are in our bodies. They circulate through our systems. The question is, are they really safe? I’m not so sure that they are. We are what we eat – or so “they” say, and I choose to be nontoxic and drug free. What do you choose?

San Francisco Coffee Roasters

Whether your preference is healthy organic coffee or regular roasted coffee the best coffee flavor comes from freshly roasted beans. For a cup of coffee free of many unwanted impurities, full of healthy antioxidants, and good for the environment choose one of the San Francisco coffee roasters for organic coffee. Remember that in a cup of freshly roasted coffee from one of the San Francisco coffee roasters you will find natural ingredients that can cut the risk of Type II diabetes in half and make prostate cancer, endometial cancer, and colon cancer less frequent as well. All this just because you routinely visit one of the San Francisco coffee roasters for a fresh batch of roasted coffee.

Freshly Roasted Organic Coffee

When you check on San Francisco coffee roasters inquire about whether they offer freshly roasted organic coffees. These coffees are USDA certified or certified by a USDA affiliate. For example Bio Latina organic coffee certification tells you that coffee beans from Panama, Colombia, and elsewhere in Latin America were grown according to sustainable agricultural practices, processed separately, and stored separate from regular coffee. When you see a USDA seal or seal of a certifying agency such as Bio Latina you can be sure that you are getting genuine organic coffee. Ask for organic coffee and skip the 150 or so impurities that often show up in regular coffee. No pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers for you!

Other Sources of Roasted Organic Coffee

If roasted organic coffee from Panama interests you please contact us a www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org . Whether your interest in in wholesale coffee of coffee that is roasted and sent to you a bag at a time check with the folks at Buy Organic Coffee who speak English, Spanish, and organic coffee.

Tips for Storing Coffee

  • Green coffee beans properly stored last for about two years
  • Roasted coffee beans retain their flavor for up to six months when vacuum packed
  • Once you open the container of roasted coffee beans do not refrigerate
  • These beans will retain their flavor for up to two months
  • Once you grind coffee beans the coffee retains its flavor for a few hours at the most

For a local roaster in San Francisco or the greater Bay Area here is a list of local vendors for both freshly roasted organic or regular coffees.

  • Blue Bottle Coffee
  • Caffe Roma Coffee Roasting
  • Caffe Trieste
  • De La Paz Roasters
  • Ecco Caffe
  • Four Barrel Coffee
  • Flywheel Coffee Roasters
  • Graffeo Coffee
  • Ritual Coffee Roasters
  • Rogers Family Coffee Company
  • San Francisco Coffee Roasting Company
  • Sight Glass Coffee
  • Toper Coffee Roasters
  • Wrecking Ball Coffee

Remember not to stock up on large quantities of roasted coffee beans from San Francisco coffee roasters, at least not more than enough for a couple of months or you will see a decline in flavor from the first cup to the last. And, certainly, do not grind a large quantity of freshly roasted coffee as the decline in flavor will be precipitous over just a few days.

Reduced Skin Cancer Risk in Coffee Drinkers

New scientific research indicates a reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers. In writing about healthy organic coffee we often emphasize the lack of contaminants in organic coffee versus regular coffee. It is known that antioxidants play a role in reducing the risk of type II diabetes and cancer. However, in the case of reduced skin cancer risk it may simply be the caffeine in coffee that does the job. Researchers at Harvard University announced that a twenty plus year named the Nurses’ Health Study shows that high caffeinated coffee intake versus low intake is associated with a reduced risk of basal cell carcinoma. Basal cell carcinoma is a localized skin cancer that comprises eight out of ten skin cancers. According to the study those who consumed higher amounts of caffeinated coffee, tea, or cola as well as those who consumed higher amounts of chocolate had a nearly twenty percent lower risk of getting basal cell carcinoma than those who consumed lower amounts. The reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers was clearest when comparing the top twenty percent by consumption with the lowest twenty percent by consumption.

The evidence of reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers is important as currently there are roughly 800,000 new cases in the USA yearly and about 30% of all Caucasians will eventually have a basal cell carcinoma. A twenty percent reduction in the incidence of this disease is significant. Reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers is not the only finding of several long term studies. More organic coffee can lead to less diabetes , for example. The antioxidants in coffee appear to increase levels of a body hormone, sex hormone-binding globulin. Increased amounts of this hormone significantly reduce the incidence of Type II diabetes, which affects 95% of all diabetics. With long term consumption of at least four cups of coffee a day women can reduce their chance of getting Type II diabetes by more than half. Considering that roughly 22 million Americans have Type II diabetes the potential is to reduce the number of cases by over ten million.

In the case of reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers, organic coffee and organic coffee antioxidants hold no advantage over regular coffee. However, organic coffee does hold an advantage of regular coffee in purity. As many as 150 contaminants have been found in regular coffee. The sustainable growing practices used to grow regular coffee prohibit the use of synthetic fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides. In addition certified organic coffee has been picked, processed, stored, shipped, and roasted separate from any regular coffee contamination. With organic coffee you get reduced skin cancer risk in coffee drinkers and you get a healthier environment as well. Shade grown organic coffee preserves habitat. Sustainable farming preserves topsoil and watersheds. Buying organic coffee helps support small family owned coffee farms which would otherwise be unable to compete against large, regular coffee, operation. When you consider drinking coffee for its many health benefits add organic coffee to your list of requirements for a good cup of coffee.

Houston Coffee Roasters

In search of high quality, freshly roasted healthy organic coffee ? There are Houston coffee roasters from whom you can purchase a wide range of regular and organic coffees. Freshness of coffee comes down to a few facts.

  1. Properly stored green coffee beans last for about two years.
  2. Roasting coffee brings about a number of complex chemical reactions in the coffee bean.
  3. Antioxidants formed in roasting coffee are responsible for its unique taste and many health benefits.
  4. Anti-oxidants break down with exposure to oxygen.
  5. Roasted beans can maintain most of their flavor for up to six months if vacuum packed.
  6. Once they are exposed to air but kept in a cool and dry place roasted coffee beans maintain flavor for no more than two months.
  7. Once you grind roasted coffee beans you expose all of the inner antioxidants to the air and you lose flavor by the hour if not the minute.

So, if you want to preserve those organic coffee antioxidants buy and store green coffee beans to roast and grind at home or, better yet, purchase small quantities of freshly roasted coffee of your choice from any of a number of Houston coffee roasters. If you buy your own green coffee store it in a bag that breaths, paper or burlap, and not in plastic. If you visit one of the Houston coffee roasters save your roasted coffee beans in a sealed glass jar in a cool place. Remember that a place like the handy cupboard right above the stove heats up when you are cooking. Pick a handy spot away for heat sources. Coffee fresh from one of the Houston coffee roasters will keep its flavor for a couple of months. Just make sure that you only grind enough for a serving or two at a time.

If you are looking for good wholesale organic coffee, green beans that is, feel free to contact Panamá Natural Organic Coffee or other suppliers through www.buyorganiccoffee.org . Panamá Natural Organic Coffee can supply naturally grown organic and sustainably grown coffees from Panama as well as Colombia. From Panama mountain grown organic coffee to Juan Valdez organic coffee from Colombia Latin America produces a number of fine coffees, available as green beans or freshly roasted coffees put in the post to mail to your home almost before the beans have cooled.

If you would just as soon walk down the street to a local vendor for your freshly roasted organic or regular coffee, here is a list of Houston coffee roasters:

  • Java Pura
  • Fusion Beans
  • Whole Foods
  • House of Coffee Beans
  • 3 Cups
  • Purple Turtle Coffee Company
  • Duncan Coffee

Remember not to stock up on large quantities of roasted coffee beans from Houston coffee roasters, at least not more than enough for a couple of months or you will see a decline in flavor from the first cup to the last. And, certainly, do not grind a large quantity of freshly roasted coffee as the decline in flavor will be precipitous over just a few days.

Buy Arabica Organic Coffee

There are two basic species of coffee, Arabica and Robusta. Arabica coffee is generally believed to be the first type of coffee to be cultivated. So, if you buy Arabica organic coffee you are buying into a tradition stretching back over a thousand years. The so called coffee shrub of Africa is believed to have originated in the mountains of Yemen although there is also evidence that the species originated in the highlands of Ethiopia and the Sudan. When you buy Arabica organic coffee you are choosing the species of coffee with superior taste according to many experts. Café Arabica also contains less caffeine than Robusta. Although wild Arabica coffee plants can reach 12 meters in height coffee growers typically prune the plant to no more than 5 meters and often as short as 2 meters high to make the coffee easier to pick. Arabica coffee grows best at just under a mile in altitude although it is grown at sea level and as high as 7,500 feet. This healthy organic coffee species does well with a meter or meter and a half of rain a year, planted on hillsides with good drainage.

Growing Arabica Coffee

When you buy organic Arabica coffee you are supporting environmentally friendly coffee farming practices by which you can benefit from the organic coffee antioxidants in Arabica coffee while avoiding as many as 150 of the contaminants often found in regular coffee. The world’s leading producers of Arabica coffee are not in Africa where the plant originated but in Brazil and Colombia in South America. Organic coffee in these regions is commonly grown on small family farms devoted to sustainable growing practices. Because of the higher price that organic coffee commands these growers can profit from the extra work required for organic farming, using organic fertilizers, and keeping all organic coffee, processing, and storage separate from any regular coffee in the supply chain. Because Arabica coffee prefers a light shade to full sun this species is a natural for spacing among other plants and trees. There is more work involved and production per acre is less but when you buy Arabica organic coffee you are getting a great product and helping the environment as well.

Buy Arabica Organic Coffee and Buy the Best

The world’s second leading producer of Arabica coffee, by quantity is Colombia. Colombia is commonly felt to be the best producer of gourmet Arabica coffees. Juan Valdez organic coffee from Colombia may be organic coffee sold by a well-known chain of coffee shops in Colombia. It is also a trade name of the Colombian Coffee Growers Association and tells the buyer that he or she is getting 100% Colombian coffee. The majority of Coffee in Colombia is grown in the cafetero, a region surrounding Manizales, Colombia at 7,000 and extending north toward Medellin and South to Cali with a smaller part in the Caucas Valley on the Pacific Coast. Colombia suffered a severe reduction in coffee production recently due to a prolonged El Niño so it may have been difficult recently to buy Arabica organic coffee from that country. However, growers expect to see a strong recovery in the next year.

Dry Coffee Beans to Stop Fermentation

A recent news release regarding coffee production in Honduras refers to the need to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. Coffee, whether regular of healthy organic coffee, needs to ripen to the right degree and no more. Remember that the coffee that we drink comes from the seed of the coffee berry and not the fruit. An integral part of processing coffee is to remove the fruit down to the coffee seed. This is often done by immersing the coffee in water for sixteen to thirty-six hours. At that point the fruit has loosened and can be washed away. The ripening or breakdown or fermentation of the fruit makes this possible. However, the seed also ferments and this process needs to be stopped before it results in unwanted changes in coffee flavor. So, processors dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. The problem mentioned in the article about Honduras is that they have ramped up coffee production in that country and have run out of space in existing facilities to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. The article mentions that one processor rented a soccer stadium, spread plastic sheets and dried his coffee where the local “futbol” team usually played.

Drying machines can be used as well as air drying in the sun. The problem for coffee processors in a country like Honduras is cost. Honduras is relatively competitive in the Arabica coffee market, behind Brazil and Colombia and in a tie with Mexico. Land prices are cheap as is labor in the countryside. During the dry season the cheapest way to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation is to spread them out in thin layers in the hot tropical sun. When the rainy season starts processors need to use machines, typically natural gas, diesel, or electric driven and there goes the cost advantage. To dry coffee beans to stop fermentation the beans are dried to eleven to twelve percent moisture content. If coffee is soaked too long (past 36 hours) or drying is not started promptly individual coffee beans develop an offensive aroma and are referred to as stinkers. In fact the entire batch will eventually go bad if not dried. Bad coffee can be sold at very low prices in the country of origin but there go any profits the processor may have dreamed of getting for his organic whole bean coffee.

Perception is important in the coffee business. If an exporter sends out an occasional bad batch of coffee his reputation suffers. He does not get orders the next year. This problem works back up the supply chain to growers. If the processor does not adequately dry coffee beans to stop fermentation the work of the small organic coffee farmer goes to waste. Organic coffee certification is not any good if buyers get a bad bag of coffee. The small grower needs to pay for Bio Latina organic coffee certification but the money goes to waste if processing is not up to par. In the end the processors in a growing market like Honduras need to buy $70,000 coffee driers and absorb the cost of fuel to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation and maintain coffee quality.

Store Coffee and Preserve Freshness

If I cannot use the freezer for a bag of coffee that I am using, where can I put the coffee? Remember that the warmest place in the kitchen is above and beside the stove. So, don’t put coffee in containers in this kitchen hot spot. Although your refrigerator is cool the top may be warm from heat bleeding off. Try a cupboard away from heat and sunlight.

Once I Open the Container

Many coffee containers are fine for shipping and until opened. After first use it is often wise to put remaining coffee into an container with an air tight seal. The cost is worth it as you will store coffee and preserve freshness away from the air.

Does Coffee Age?

The answer is yes! The reason that Panama Mountain Grown Organic Coffee is often shipped to the USA for roasting is not because they cannot roast coffee in Panama (or Colombia, or Brazil, or Vietnam). It is because coffee starts to lose its flavor as soon as the roasting process is completed. Thus roasting takes place close to the market where coffee will be sold. You will want to store coffee and preserve freshness but you will also want to purchase small quantities of coffee, enjoy our coffee, and buy more when you run out. Coffee is not a fine wine. It does not improve with age.

If you purchase a large quantity of wholesale coffee put the larger amount in an air tight container and take your daily coffee out of a smaller container, replenishing as needed. Small and airtight containers can be store in the freezer but only until the first use. The same rules apply for regular coffee and healthy organic coffee. Coffee ages and it ages more if it is warm, wet, and exposed to the air. For more useful information about organic coffee feel free to browse through our articles at www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org.