Crimson Cup, AVI Foodsystems and Kenyon College Teach Students about Sustainable Coffee Sourcing

Our higher education team recently partnered with AVI Foodsystems and Kenyon College to teach students about transparency in the coffee trade.

Students in Associate Professor Jennifer Johnson’s Sociology of Food class traced the steps by which their morning cup of java ended up at campus coffee shops. The project culminated April 9 through 11 in Coffee Week, when the Sociology of Food class engaged the campus community in an educational and entertaining dialogue.

“Crimson Cup and Kenyon College Dining, managed by AVI Foodsystems, worked with Professor Johnson and her students to give campus consumers information they can use to make conscious decisions about what they are consuming,” said Jill Chuha, higher education team leader for Crimson Cup. ” The students learned how their purchases and consumption choices have social, economic and environmental impact around the globe.”

Christopher Wisbey, Resident Director for AVI at Kenyon, noted that sustainability is top of mind for many Kenyon students and faculty members. “AVI at Kenyon works with many small farmers, giving back to the local community, and Crimson Cup does the same thing with farmers in coffee-growing countries,” he said. “Ours partnership delivers high quality, sustainably sourced coffee on campus at an affordable price.”

Through our Friend2Farmer direct trade program, Crimson Cup works to develop sustainable coffee harvests and a better quality of life for smallholder coffee farmers, their families and their communities.

Crimson Cup been working with coffee farmers in Siguatepeue, Honduras, since 2011. “The direct trade coffee served at Kenyon represents the work of over 40 growers who have committed to biodiversity and land and water conservation,” Jill said.  “Cutting out the middlemen and forgoing costly certifications helps us provide the best possible coffee at the best possible cost while achieving economic stability for local families.”

As part of the project, students visited the Crimson Cup Innovation Lab in Columbus to learn how coffee is imported and roasted. “The students asked a lot of thoughtful questions,” Jill said. “Their Coffee Week presentations did an amazing job of teaching other students about sustainability and transparency in the coffee trade.”

Chris Wisbey noted that Crimson Cup coffee has earned rave reviews on campus. “Our students love the coffee and thought it was an immediate upgrade over the previous vendor we were using,” he said.  “Kenyon was very excited that we partnered with Crimson Cup because many of the faculty and staff are familiar with this award-winning Ohio coffee roaster.”