Coffees that are certified organically grown have been produced without synthetic chemicals according to guidelines that have been standardized by the· United States Department of Agriculture (for u.s. Imports other standards apply elsewhere). Certified-organic cultivation is an active regimen· that requires soil enrichment, environmental protection an separation of certified and noncertified products.

Organic coffees marked the first type of certification to enter the American coffee market, with the earliest certified-organic coffee coming from Mexico in· 1982.

In the United States and Europe, interest in all kinds of naturally produced goods took off in the late '60s. In progressive centers around the country, people started farming organically, formed food cooperatives and supported the fledging market, despite typically poor quality of the produce.

In the midst of this enthusiasm, Chris Shepherd and others interested in alternative agriculture started a citrus ranch and related natural foods businesses in 1975 in Ojai, Calif. "Then we learned about this magical coffee farm named Finca Irlanda'" an estate in southern Mexico, Shepherd recalls, and they decided to add coffee to the retail business.

The Walters family of Finca lrlanda cultivated coffee in the high mountains of Chiapas using a holistic agriculture system. In 1952, a portion of Finca Irlanda earned what appears to be the first certification of any kind in coffee from the Demeter association of Germany - ) a branch of the international movement that certifies goods produced according to the "biodynamic" method.

In 1980, Shepherd started buying uncertified coffee from farm owner Walter Peters. Two years later, a Demeter association formed in the United States and certified all of Finca Irlanda as organic. In 1982, Shepherd's Caf'e Altura became the first known shipment of certifiedorganic coffee to be sold in the U.S. (Shepherd continues to market Caf' e Altura through Clean Foods Inc. in Santa Paula, Calif.)

Also in the '70s, Gary Talboy was developing specialty coffee businesses, including a roastery in Portland, Ore. Talboy viewed organic certification as a way to add value to coffee. It would allow the consumer of organic produce to extend their values from protecting his own health to protecting the health of the coffee producer.

But Talboy wanted an audit trail that would add credibility in a marketplace poised to grow. He was impressed with the audit trail

of one certifier, the growercontrolled Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA), of Lincoln, Neb. "It was designed to guarantee that there is no compromise to the certification between the grower and the consumer," says Talboy, who now operates Specialty Coffee Consultants in Washougal, Wash. "To do that, you have to audit each person who handles the coffee."

Talboy convinced OCIA leaders to write standards for foreign operations. He found two farmers in Guatemala's Atitlan region and a processor who were willing to get certified. He brought his first certified-organic coffee into the United ~Stlifes also' around 1982 becoming the first roaster to do so.

Selling the certified-organic coffee posed a problem relevant today: positive versus negative marketing. Talboy wanted to justify the higher cost of certified-organic coffee without implyirig that non-organic coffees were somehow tainted. (In fact, roasted coffees by their nature contain no detectable ~pesticide residue. That's because plants g~llerally take up chemicals through water. But the coffee bean, like most seeds, has little water and so absorbs very little chemicals.

Roasting at temperatures above 400 degrees Fahrenheit destroys any chemicals that may be in conventionally grown beans, according to research by Robert Rice of the Smithsonian Institution's Migratory Bird Center.)

However, research in Costa Rica had uncovered groundwater contaminated with chemicals used to grow coffee. In addition, the use of chemicals raised questions about their effect on coffee workers' health. Talboy found that these concerns resonated with buyers, who were also hearing protests from American farm workers about chemicals used in American fields. So, Talboy presented the idea that organic coffee protects the health of coffee workers and the coffeeproducing environment. In this context, organic certification offered an alternative life-style message that retailers could sell to environmentally concerned consumers. "This is not about [consumer] health. This is about supporting alternative agriculture," he says.

Quality· of certified-organic coffee improved and demand grew. By the '90s, the organic marketplace in general also suffered from a dizzying number of competing organic labels. A national effort ensued to develop a single standard, and in 2000, the National Organic Program (NaP) was born. This norm now governs all food sold in the United States as certifiedorganic. (The European Union and Japan each has its own standard, and efforts continue to bring some harmony to standards internationally. ) Certification Requirements

Today, organic certification focuses on production methods, written procedures and a paper trail that follows each lot of coffee from the farm to the retailer. Certification agencies and consultants help both producers and roasters navigate the Nap rules; they may also impose requirements of their own that are most specific than the Nap language.

Requirements for farmers include:

• A farm management plan that describes each aspect of cultivation
• No synthetic chemicals, except under strict conditions.
• Organic seed stock
• Clean water used for processing; waterways protected from pollution.
• Farm waste recycling.
• Certified products separated from non-certified at every step.
• Keeping detailed logs of activities.

Processing mills, storage facilities and exporters must also be certified organic and must continue the paper trail. In addition, farmers also must show they have used no syntheic chemicals on their land for at least three years. If they are converting from conventional cultivation, this transition period can be difficult: production typically drops to less than half, the groves require intensive labor and there are few markets for transitional coffee. But within a few years, the volume picks up and labor inputs level off. Though the volume usually remains less than that for coffee grown with chemicals, the ratio of volume to the cost of the inputs offers significant advantages to farmers.

Inspections typically take ·at Ie, three days, or longer if the farm cooperative is very large. Inspecti( agencies must "register with tl USDA and follow the NC guidelines.· However, son certification agencies are kno\ll for being stricter than others ar so buyers should do their resean before making a long-ter commitment.

Helping producers

Producers embrace organi production for reasons entirel different from their northern buyer They originally looked to organ] certification as a low-cost productio technique that avoided costly an harmful pesticides. Small coffee farmers in Mexico-th fifth-largest coffee producing natior were frustrated with thei government's control over all phase of cultivation, processin~ exportation and finance. Th, system "was part of th modernization program th government was promoting. But th agriculture of chemical inputs wa very difficult in the Indian zones, says Jorge Aguilar, who organize, coffee growers .in Chiapas Mexico's top coffee growing state At the same time, many producer were noticing algae blooms and fis1 kills in local streams and chroni, cold-like symptoms among thei children, and they drew a connectiol to the chemicals they used in the groves.

So in 1985, small farmers met to consider alternatives "that didn't pollute, that were locally controlled that were easy to repair and that didn't enslave people to technology, Aguilar recalls. They noticed the system used so successfully a Finca Irlanda and learned from Peters and others using holistic agricultural practices. The Ismam cooperative that Aguilar led had aiready earned certification from an early fair-trade group, Max HaveIaar of Holland. Members realized that by having their coffee origanically certified as well, they· could employ a technique more appropriate to their conditions, get a higher price, reduce 'their costs relati ve to income and gain access to the fledgling American specialty market.

For Ismam's indigenous Mam farmers, organic cultivation quickly improved the quality of their coffee and raised their standard of living . "Before, all the money they had was for labor costs," Aguilar says. With the savings reaped from organic techniques, "we created funds for projects. We could gain access to credit and technology. The farmers could buy land, improve their houses and buy a vehicle, cows, donkeys or mules so they could carry more product.'

In the ensuring 15 years, Ismam farmers earned $90 mIllion for their coffee. The co-op developed a reputation as one of the best cooperative - produced organic coffees in the world. Now, Aguilar and co-op leaders from around southern Mexico are expanding their succes.s with organic cultivation to other crops.

Roasters Meet Demand

As with producers, the NOP requires roasters to have written producers and records of compliance with those producers. The concern is primarily with separation of organic and non certified beans, sanitation and tracking lots of coffee through the operation. However, much of the food processing industry already has many of these practices in place, says Joe Smillie, senior vice-president of QAI, which is based in S~n Diego, Calif. "We want to see if the system is accountable," he says:

To be certified organic, roasters must

• Handle organic and non-certified beans separately, including utilizing storage and labeling methods that keep them from mIXIng.
• Clean and / or purge equipment when switching from a conventional to an organic product.
• Have a pest - management plan that uses non-chemical methods.
• Keep paperwork to document these practices, including a product flow - chart and tracking individual lots separately.

A typical inspection could include pulling all the documentation for a particular batch of· coffee roasted on a certain day, Smillie says. That information could be checked against sanitation logs listing when the machinery had been purged of non': certified beans. "It's not for us to poke around and find if you're cheating," he says. "What you're proving is you've got the management abilities and the physical resources to do it. If they've got an inadequate plan, then there'll be pressure on them in the future to cut corners."

For roasters, organic has proven to be a profitable niche. Sales of all organic products in the United States have grown an average of 20 percent annually to about $13 billion in 2003, according to the Organic Trade Association ..

Groundwork Coffee Co. is a small Los Angeles roaster, but probably the largest certified - organic operation in the region. Of the one million pounds that Groundwork roasts yearly, about 40 percent is certified - organic, says chief operating officer Ric Rhinehart.

As four retail locations in trendy districts, an artsy crowd ha pushed by-the-cup sales to nearly 80 percent organic. The company plans to go 100 percent organic for coffee in the near future and is phasing in other organic products as well, including tea, milk, soy milk and sugar. "We're the anti-Starbuck's. Our average customer is between 21 and 35, has three piercings and four tatoos," Rhinehart laughs. "Serving organic coffee at retail is an absolutely market-driven decision."

But "stroller moms" in conservative suburbs are showing interest, too, Rhinehart says. The wholesale business, which ranges from bagel shops and mom-and-pop caf' es to upscale restaurants, stand at 28 percent organic and growing.

In addition, quality has improved in the last five to seven years, he says. "It used to be organic coffee was in relatively short supply and 'quality was catch-as-catch7can," he admits. "We do find a lot more quality organic coffee today."