Conscious Fashion: The Human Bean

Oh coffee, so dependable and always there to pick me up in the morning. I love your aroma, your smooth taste and your bold flavor; I love it all. Two things that make you even better are fair trade practices and easy access.

The Human Bean, an Oregon based coffee drive-thru, meets both of these requirements. Since having first opened its doors (ahem, I mean drive-thru windows) in 1998, The Human Bean has stayed true to its mission. The drive-thru coffee company strives to serve high quality coffee to people on the go while developing lasting relationships with their customers and business partners. This involves establishing fair trade farming practices with the coffee farmers, vendors and franchisees. Going as far as incorporating the human person into the company’s name, it’s clear that The Human Bean makes lasting relationships a priority.

One program The Human Bean actively participates in is Farm Friendly Direct. This program partners coffee companies, such as The Human Bean, with farmers who want to build a better life for themselves while providing the finest coffee possible. In most circumstances, only a fraction of proceeds actually make it back to the farmers. Farm Friendly Direct hopes to change this. Not only are profits returned to the farmers and their families, they are invested back into their community; any extra money from the harvest is allocated for community improvement projects. By participating in Farm Friendly Direct, The Human Bean is helping to establish long-term relationships with the farmers and provide them with a steady source of income.

In addition to high quality coffee, when you visit The Human Bean, you’ll receive an extra little treat; every coffee is served with a chocolate covered coffee bean. These aren’t your average bite-size beans with a single coating of chocolate, these are mini mounds of a chocolate covering a coffee bean. Wrapped in layers of white and milk chocolate, these beans can be addicting. You might find yourself going through the drive-thru just for one of these divine beans. If this happens, at least you can rest knowing you’re supporting a good cause!