Many of us here in the states have the luxury of not knowing where our food, or any other commodity for that matter, comes from. It is very easy to live in this country and operate as if all the food in the grocery store just materializes there everyday. I know for me personally, my perception of where food comes from falls somewhere in the middle. There were plenty of small, local farms in my area who sold their products independently at farmer’s markets or their own farm stands, but large commercial farms that supply grocery store chains have never been on my radar. It was really interesting to hear Mr. Lemnios speak about some of the farms where Sun Coffee Roasters gets its coffee, but also how he came to develop Sun Coffee Roasters.

I really liked how honest he was about how when he initially got into coffee roasting, he was not so interested in sustainability or making sure the farmers supplying his company were paid fairly but after learning more about the industry he decided to make sustainability and fair trade the center of his company. It really demonstrated what he was talking about when he said that people don’t care what you’re selling, they care about why you’re selling it. To me it seems like Mr. Lemnios has a pretty good why. He very clearly cares deeply about the farms and farmers who supply his roaster, and on top of that cares enough about the environment to invest in developing a zero emission roasting plant. To me it really shows that it is entirely possible as a businessman to be interested in both ethical sources and sustainability without compromising profits or success. This is why I think it is so important to be an informed buyer, whether that buyer is an individual or an institution, and whenever possible buy from ethical and sustainable companies. We know that such businesses are possible, so it is important for the buyer to demand these business models to be the norm.