What is Smithsonian Bird Friendly Coffee?

Alika Magas | February 24, 2021

The connection between birds and coffee doesn’t really seem apparent, does it? But the two are more heavily intertwined than you might think. Coffee is naturally an under-story shrub, meaning that it thrives best when it’s covered by a canopy of trees, trees which provide a natural habitat for a wide variety of species, one of the most important being birds. But, in the 1970s, as demand for coffee grew, a new process was brought into practice; sun-grown coffee provided higher yields and was, obviously, more appealing to producers. The process brought heavy amounts of deforestation along with it, effectively damaging the birds’ ecosystem. Smithsonian Bird Friendly Coffee is all about reversing this devastating practice. Instead of the sun-grown process, bird friendly coffee emphasizes the shade grown, which brings along with it a slew of advantages in the coffee world—advantages which have long since been forgotten.

Decimation of bird-friendly habitats all comes down to sun-grown coffee. As far as coffee production goes there are two main growing practices: sun and shade grown. Sun growth accelerates the maturation period of the coffee bean, which in turn produces an immediately higher yield. Coffee is the third largest American import behind oil and steel, and its popularity provides incentive for expedited grow times. Rapid coffee development is one of the best ways to rake in profit, but sun growth requires all the trees in the plantation to be removed. Permanently.

An example of partial-shade coffee. While not covered by a full canopy, as Bird Friendly coffee is required to be, it still poses a number of ecological benefits.

Credit: Jack Hebert, Flickr. CC license.

Shade grown coffee, however, keeps the rain forest canopy intact, allowing the coffee to grow as it naturally would beneath the protection of trees. While it does take longer for the beans to mature, shade grown coffee produces a coffee bean that is far more dense, more evenly developed, and more saturated with sugar and oils. All of these elements combine to create a coffee with a fuller body and flavor so that your morning cup of joe tastes even better. And not just that but keeping the rain forest intact preserves the natural environment of birds and other animals. After all, rain forests are responsible for housing 70% of the world’s plant and animal diversity. And birds are vital not only to the planet as a whole, but to the production of coffee as well.

For example, Birds are some of the most important pollinators on the planet. Yes, bees and butterflies are obviously crucial as well, but when birds are kept in a coffee plantation, their assistance in pollinating the plant helps increase the yield of coffee. Birds also act as a natural pesticide, eating roughly 400-500 million tons of insects a year including pests that are typically deterred by chemicals in sun-grown coffee farms. The predator/prey balance birds provide reduces the need for pesticides that can saturate the soil and pollute nearby bodies of water via water runoff.

So, keep all this in mind whenever you see a Smithsonian Bird Friendly certified coffee. Whenever you see the certification, it means that all of the above advantages are directly related to the coffee you’re about to drink. And yes, you can also seek out shade grown coffee as well to support other eco-friendly practices, but keep in mind that not all shade-grown coffee is bird friendly certified.

The new Smithsonian Bird Friendly logo.

Source: Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center

The bird friendly certification relates to coffee that has been assessed and approved by the Smithsonian Bird Friendly organization, which proudly protects around 37,000 acres of rain forest. Their criteria stands out as a culmination of several ecological touchpoints—the certification focuses on maintaining the natural habitats of birds and, as such, has strict regulations as to the kind of forestry that must be maintained. Their high level of specificity also ensures that protecting birds serves as a catalyst for guarding the environment as a whole. For example, the overall canopy of trees must be at least twelve meters tall and consist of the native “backbone” species of that area, meaning that preserving the natural state of the forest is a top priority. Beneath that, the regulation has requirements concerning floristic diversity, foliage cover, and other such categories. In addition, every coffee must be USDA certified organic.

Next time you’re looking to buy coffee think all of this through: finding that Smithsonian Bird Friendly Coffee certification is essential to continuing ethical coffee growing practices. Not only does it mean that you’re about to drink organic coffee which is shade grown and, thus, more flavorful and high-grade, but you’re participating in flipping the script on how coffee is produced—which is essential now more than ever. Because environmental awareness is beginning to influence consumer thinking, the next few years are essential in reshaping the coffee market. If you do your part and give the market incentive to reverse their practices back to shade-grown and bird friendly methods of coffee production, you’re encouraging keeping biodiversity intact, preventing deforestation, and reducing the use of harmful pesticides. If you’re a numbers person, summarize it this way: in South America alone, coffee plantations are responsible for 54% of all permanent croplands. If you promote the now-now-now mindset of sun grown coffee, you’re providing motivation to deforest that 54% of land—bringing about a number of negative environmental impacts.

So, what are you waiting for? Go find that delicious bird-friendly coffee. It tastes fantastic and you’ll feel even better when you drink it.