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Fairtrade, Our Story
We love Fairtrade
Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world..
By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices (which must never fall lower than the market price), Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives.
With Fairtrade you have the power to change the world every day. With simple shopping choices you can get farmers a better deal. And that means they can make their own decisions, control their future and lead the dignified life everyone deserves.
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We Give Back to the Communities That Need It!
Charity
Who we support
Toybox is our chosen charity which we support with vital funds to make a difference to communities in coffee growing regions together with ad hoc support for local charities.
Latest News
Recent Blog Posts
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Posted: November 20, 2023Categories: Recipes
Read more »With the festive period here, why not try a couple of our recommended recipes!
Chai – Vanilla Chai
This Chai can be prepared in three simple ways;
- With Water; Firstly, add 3 teaspoons of powder into a cup. Secondly, stir in 200ml of hot water.
- With Milk; Add 3 teaspoons of powder into a cup, stir in 250 ml hot milk.
- With Ice; Firstly, put 4 teaspoons of powder into a cup. Then pour in cold milk and whizz with a milk frother and serve over ice.
Gingerbread Latte Macchiato – Ingredients; 30ml
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Posted: November 01, 2023
Read more »Island Bakery are a brand we love. Based on the idyllic Isle of Mull, they produce only the highest quality Organic biscuits. Extensive taste-testing (particularly by our MD Darren) has led to us not only continuing to supply these delicious biscuits, but also to add to our range with their new Orange Melts (600-076). These citrus sensations feature an all butter biscuit with pure organic orange oil, half dipped in dreamy organic Belgian milk chocolate.
These Orange Melts are made from only the best organic ingredients and then baked using unique ovens that are heated by Mull's plentiful renewable timber. This has been chosen as not only are these environmentally sustainable, but they also allow for a gentle heat that gives a slow, perfect bake.
Island Bakery also go the extra mile in other aspects - their new factory building is powered entirely with local sources of renewable energy. Electricity for the building is generated both by a hydro-electric turbine on the neighbouring Tobermory river, and a single wind turbine set on a hill above the bakery.
They also chose to become an organic business. Organic standards ensure that all of their ingredients have been produced on land that is free from pesticides or artificial fertilizers. This is good for the ecosystems on and around the farms that have grown the wheat for the flour, or where the cows whose milk makes the butter have grazed. We can be assured that those cows will enjoy the highest standards of animal welfare. Every ingredient in these biscuits is fully traceable back to the producer.
Choosing Island Bakery biscuits also offers you assurance that the food you eat will contain:
- No GMOs
- No preservatives
- No artificial colours
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Read more »The world of pour over coffee is littered with complexities. Some will state it must be done a specific way, with a specific type of water or other fixed elements or your coffee will be completely undrinkable. However, we hold the opinion that to find the best cup of coffee using this method for your personal preference, experimentation is essential. Take our guide as a starting point and experiment with the following key factors and see what makes the best cup for your preference. In regards to quantities of water per stage and timing, this is also a huge area of variance – do trial some other methods and see what you enjoy. In many peoples opinion, the best part of a pour over is this room to experiment.
Variables
- Type of Coffee – trial different blends
- Amount of Coffee – typically a ratio of 1:17 is used (i.e. a 300ml coffee would require 18g of ground coffee or a 700ml Hario V60 02 would require roughly 41 grams)
- Grind size – if you grind at home, try a finer grind for a longer extraction or a coarser grind for a quicker extraction; this will affect the strength of the flavour
- Amount of water used
- Method of pouring - this includes speed as well as technique which is commonly Pulsing (pouring then letting drain) vs continuous (pouring and keeping fairly topped up)
Our recommended starting point:
Required
- Freshly boiled water
- Ground coffee (pre-ground or freshly ground)
- V60 filter and filter paper
Steps
- First, boil your water
- Place the filter paper into the filter and then pour a little of your freshly boiled water over the filter (this has been found to reduce any impact of papery taste from the filter) and then dispose of that water.
- Place ground coffee in the filter; many recommend a ratio of 1:17 for this– please note that this ratio is a pure starting point, and the strength of the coffee you get from this can wildly vary dependent on your grind size so don’t be too disheartened if this creates a particularly strong coffee. Many then recommend a small divot is made in the middle of the ground coffee at this point.
- Pour enough water to cover the grounds in the filter and allow the coffee to bloom – this is basically leaving the coffee for 30-45 seconds to release the CO2 to be released and makes it easier to extract the grounds.
- Begin to pour the water again, covering all the grounds again in a circular motion – try to get the balance of agitating the bed of coffee but not too aggressively.
- We prefer to keep this topped up until you reach your required volume of water – this has the benefit of retaining this thermal mass and allowing for extraction at this higher temperature.
- Allow the coffee to drain and give the V60 a small swirl by hand when low enough to do so and serve to bring the grounds off the side of the filter paper.
- Serve in your favourite mug or mugs and enjoy!
Extras
Some recommend using a gooseneck kettle like the one we sell, the Felicita Square Temperature Control Electric Kettle (400-400). The reason this is recommended is both the Temperature Control (which allows you another element to tinker with) as well as the gooseneck spout – this allows for much more control over your pour rate and direction (with another benefit being the beautiful design).
Another element that people adjust is the water used - this can change the taste to a large extent, however, this is likely not to be something applicable to most as this is another step to the process.
Other resources
In regards to trialling other methods, I would recommend looking into various Youtube sources. Please do note that these can get massively technical, but if you are into that then this is a great rabbit hole to explore.
James Hoffman Ultimate V60 Method - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI4ynXzkSQo
Scott Rao V60 Method - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Qe_ASxfNM
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Posted: August 24, 2023Categories: Coffee
Read more »What
The new Fairtrade prices, which come into effect for contracts signed as of 1 August 2023, will increase the baseline price by 19 percent and 29 percent for Fairtrade-certified Robusta and Arabica coffee, respectively. The new Fairtrade Minimum Price for washed Arabica beans – which represent more than 80 percent of all Fairtrade coffee sold – is $1.80 per pound, an increase of 40 cents over the previous price of $1.40 per pound.
‘The Fairtrade Minimum Price is critical for coffee farmers as it cushions them from the unpredictable fluctuations they face on the coffee market. But the situation coffee farmers endure globally due to financial hardships and climate change remains unsustainable and, quite frankly, puts the entire future of coffee at risk,’ warned Silvia Gonzalez, Manager at the Nicaraguan coffee producer UCA Miraflor and Board Member at Fairtrade regional producer network CLAC.
‘If
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Posted: July 12, 2023Categories: Coffee
Read more »The Highest Quality
Source
Having established long-standing relationships with producers within the coffee farming community, we consistently source the best Arabica and Robusta beans from over 40 origins across the Coffee Growing Belt. We buy only the best grades of "Strictly High Grown" (SHG) coffee beans or specialities. By selecting coffee beans from the highest elevations we can be sure that the bean has slowly matured, growing to a larger size with more density to create a consistently great taste profile. We primarily supply Fairtrade or Organic coffee as we believe that a fair deal that encourages conservation, whilst also avoiding the use of pesticides and certain agrochemicals, is hugely important for both our customers and our farmers.
Roasting Method
We are unique in that we roast on a clean bed of air in small batches as opposed to conventional drum roasting - only 1% of coffee is roasted this way. Air roasting elevates the natural sweetness to give a smooth and clean taste. Unlike traditional roasting, the chaff (the skin of the bean) that surrounds the raw bean is removed during the process whilst in normal roasting this is burnt onto the bean. This makes the resultant air roasted beans purer as the beans taste less burnt and less acidic.
Freshness
Our beans are fresh, being roasted weekly in the UK rather than importing roasted beans on a much longer timescale. Our Neotec roaster is more environmentally friendly and energy efficient than conventional drum roasters in that it can roast in specific small batches with unique roasting profiles. This allows it to compensate for product variations and to unfold the unique flavour of each individual coffee blend whilst reducing wasted heat, recirculating this in the fully enclosed system. Not only does it typically use 40% less energy per kilo of coffee, it also boasts carbon capture technology.
The Lowest Price
Buying
We buy direct, ensuring no middle men or third parties add costs to you, the end consumer. By buying direct we do not have to buy in separate pallets saving on shipping costs. We actively consider forward hedging and currency management to ensure we get the most for our money.
Production & Processing
An initial high capital investment into state-of-the-art premises and machinery has ensured both a high level of quality control and consistency. This results in less wastage as well as a lower energy cost per kilo than other roasters, with semi automation resulting in a lower labour cost per kilo too.
Logistics
We use full containers, ensuring that each container wastes no valuable space. We do not use any middle warehouse, handling agent or third party shipper and as such do not incur the fees commonly involved. -
Posted: July 07, 2023Categories: Charities
Read more »In this post, we wanted to share how choosing Kingdom Coffee and our products helps us continue to support Toybox, an amazing charity who aim to help street children and run prevention and outreach projects in Guatemala City. The following comes from a report we have been sent by Toybox directly.
Over the last 12 months, your generosity has helped some of the most vulnerable children on the streets:
• 100 street children and young people a month were provided with night-time support with the distribution of food, drinks and given basic medical care.
• Over 100 street children were actively involved in life skills workshops, recreational activities and/or child rights workshops, where they also received food & drinks.
• 63 street children accessed therapeutic and psycho-social support.
• 38 street children accessed health care.
• 95 young people in street situations were supported & gained work skills.
• 343 street children and young people were suppor -
Posted: May 02, 2023
Read more »A range of polluting single-use plastics will be banned in England, Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey announced on the 14th January 2023 from October this year.
According to estimates, England uses 2.7 billion items of single-use cutlery — most of which are plastic — and 721 million single-use plates per year, but only 10% are recycled. The ban will include single-use plastic plates, trays, bowls, cutlery, balloon sticks, and certain types of polystyrene cups and food containers. This ban will be introduced from October 2023, allowing businesses time to prepare.
In helping our customers adapt to these changes, we have introduced a new range of biodegradable bowls, plates, lids, soup bowls and more to accompany our existing range of biodegradable products.
It is expected that banning these items will have a significant impact in reducing plastic waste and littering in England. Plastic cutlery, for instance, was in the top 15 most littered items in th
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Read more »Fairtrade Fortnight - 27 February to 12 March 2023
For two weeks each year at the end of February and start of March, thousands of individuals, companies and groups across the UK come together to share the stories of the people who grow our food and drinks, mine our gold and who grow the cotton in our clothes, people who are often exploited and underpaid.
Can you help us get the message out even louder this Fairtrade Fortnight? Sign up now to receive an invite to a fairtrade preview event and be the first to hear about headline events!
This Fairtrade Fortnight, join us in spreading a simple message: making the small switch to Fairtrade supports producers in protecting the future of some of our most-loved food and the planet.
Did you know?
Coffee, bananas and chocolate could soon be much more difficult to buy.
Climate change is making crops like these harder and harder to grow. Combined with deeply unfair trade, communities growing these crops are being pushed to the brink.
But here’s the good news.
More people choosing Fairtrade means extra income, power and support for those communities.
By making the small switch to Fairtrade, we can all support producers in protecting the future of some of our most-loved food and the planet.
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