Ethical certification – Sustainability with a rich aroma

John Russell, Deputy Editor

As coffee drinkers face a proliferation of “ethical labels” – Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance, Utz Kapeh – it is time to ask what they all mean
McDonald’s and the Eden Project, the environmental visitor attraction in Cornwall, UK, might appear to have nothing in common. But there is one thing they do share: their taste in coffee.

Environmental conservation is a rarely noted concern of McDonald’s clientele. But now visitors to the chain’s 1,200 UK outlets can wash down their Big Macs with a cup of coffee that claims to protect the rainforest.

Since January, all McDonald’s coffee has been sourced from farms meeting the social and environmental standards of the Rainforest Alliance, an environmental non-governmental organisation that certifies coffee producers. The chain buys its beans from Kraft-owned coffee roaster Kenco, which has sold Rainforest Alliance-branded coffee since 2003.

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