The Ethics of Coffee - Coffee with a Mission

At Drinklings Coffee and Mugs, ethics are a huge component of what we stand for. We believe every cup of coffee is a chance to practice justice and resist injustice and that goes in a variety of directions. This is the world of social entrepreneurship. That is, how can small businesses orient their work and themselves to the world not simply as it is but as it should be. 

At Drinklings we practice the following ethics:

• Ethical Sourcing - With a preference for Direct Trade, we do not purchase coffee without traceability. Coffee has a story to tell and that story is a 3-year one from seed to cup. 
• Ethical Energy - We use an energy efficient fluid bed roaster that does not rely on propane or fossil fuels directly. While there is a long way to go here in terms of how electricity is developed, we are always thinking about how we can use our machinery efficiently. You'll also notice if you come through the Drinklings Coffee House that we utilize several solar panels to bring down about a 1/3rd of our energy costs.
• Ethical Packaging - From the bag of coffee to the cups, straws, and utensils we use at the Drinklings Coffee House we aim to use 100% soil to soil packaging for every item we produce. In addition, we recycle all the coffee chafe and grounds we make in local compost piles and re-use packaging from shipments that come in for wrapping up mugs and providing cushion to our own shipments. 
• The Drinklings 242 Program - We choose to give a percentage of every sale to projects we believe in both at an international and local level. Specifically, we sponsor The Good Samaritan Project, India which provides education for Indian children and The Wilmore Community Service Center where we have a discretionary needs fund established for individuals or families facing extreme outlying situations (this latter fund was inspired by Southland Church's The Dollar Club). 

Of course, there is a long way to go both as an organization and in our micro and macro societies but we believe small businesses should do everything they can to build ethics into their organization at various levels. Just because a small business is a minnow amongst the conglomerates of big chains and organizations, together we can be a whale that cannot be ignored.

Drinklings does not aim to wear this on its sleeve. But we do want to be transparent about the ways in which small coffee shops, businesses, organizations, and churches can impact the world little by little. We just hope to inspire others to think about how they can use whatever it is that God has given them in ways that steward the people, the earth, and their products responsibly.