© 2024
Virginia's Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Coffee Under Threat

What does global warming have to do with coffee?  One Virginia business owner says "a lot." So much that your morning cup of "joe" is going to get costlier. And he's not alone. 

Dozens of the Commonwealth’s businesses are pressuring the General Assembly and Congress to seriously confront the challenge of climate change before there is an economic crisis.

Will Herring, who is co-owner of Crossroads Coffee and Ice Cream in Richmond, says his customers enjoy quality products like the Wild Coffea arabica produced in Ethiopia. From time to time, he ventures out to learn more about similar products and their origins, and he doesn’t like everything he finds:

He says when those countries have lower yields, it drives up the price, which is passed on to consumers. Herring was joined by local farmers who, along with roughly 80 other small Virginia businesses, are petitioning the state to adopt cleaner, more efficient energy practices. They also want lawmakers to provide more incentives for companies which adopt policies that reduce the carbon footprint. Environment Virginia, which is floating the petition, believes that right now lawmakers show favor to companies that contribute to global warming.

 

Tommie McNeil is a State Capitol reporter who has been covering Virginia and Virginia politics for more than a decade. He originally hails from Maryland, and also doubles as the evening anchor for 1140 WRVA in Richmond.