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FAQ

WE TRANSFORM

MONOCULTURE

GREEN DESERT

TO
AGROFOREST

Curu partners long-term with small holder coffee farmers to integrate native trees into their plantations and to stop using agrotoxins.

Introducing trees into farming is called agroforestry.

CURU FARMER PARTNERS

introduce at least one hundred trees per hectare of coffee plantation, predominantly native trees of at least 11 different species, to support the unique and threatened biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest where Curu partners farm. Planting trees on farms is controversial in the Atlantic Forest region. Native trees are vital to the ecosystem, but producers see shade as a threat to their coffee production and so to their income. We’re here to change this, with just the right amount of shade to help and not so much as to threaten productivity.

FROM

ERODED EARTH

degraded by intensive monoculture

A handful of earth degraded by the long-term intensive coffee monoculture farming that dominates commercial coffee production. The pesticides and fungicides needed in intensive farming damage the soil organisms that help keep soil naturally fertile. Also essential to fertile soil is organic matter, but since monocultures reduce the organic materials returning to the soil, the earth becomes less fertile over time. Leaving earth exposed by using herbicides to clear plants that might compete with the coffee plants for nutrients reduces the soil organic matter that is essential for fertile soil.
References
Soil aggregation and organic carbon of oxisols under coffee in agroforestry systems, Gabriel Pinto Guimarães; Eduardo de Sá Mendonça; Renato Ribeiro PassoI; Felipe Vaz Andrade, Revista Brasileria de Ciência do Solo 38:278-287, 2014;
Pesticides and Soil Invertebrates: A Hazard Assessment, Tari Gunstone et al, Frontiers in Environmental Science, published 4 May 2021doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2021.643847
Long-Term Coffee Monoculture Alters Soil Chemical Properties and Microbial Communities. Zhao, Q., Xiong, W., Xing, Y. et al., Sci Rep 8, 6116 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-24537-2
hide references

TO
HEALTHY SOIL

HEALTHY SOIL OF AN AGROFOREST

A handful of healthy earth teems with 10 to 100 million diverse organisms that make soil naturally fertile.

Agroforestry improves soil biodiversity, which is essential for agricultural sustainability. Organisms that live in the earth cycle and store nutrients,, store carbon, regulate pests and diseases and their tunnels help soil hold water. Curu agroforests keep earth covered with plants to help stop fertile topsoil being washed away by rain, and the plants themselves are incorporated into the earth as organic matter, which is important to fertility, carbon and water storage.
References
Soil aggregation and organic carbon of oxisols under coffee in agroforestry systems, Gabriel Pinto Guimarães; Eduardo de Sá Mendonça; Renato Ribeiro PassoI; Felipe Vaz Andrade, Revista Brasileria de Ciência do Solo 38:278-287, 2014;
Pesticides and Soil Invertebrates: A Hazard Assessment, Tari Gunstone et al, Frontiers in Environmental Science, published 4 May 2021doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2021.643847
hide references

WE TRANSFORM

MONOCULTURE

GREEN DESERT

TO
AGROFOREST

Curu partners long-term with small holder coffee farmers to integrate native trees into their plantations and to stop using agrotoxins.

Introducing trees into farming is called agroforestry.

CURU FARMER PARTNERS

introduce at least one hundred trees per hectare of coffee plantation, predominantly native trees of at least 11 different species, to support the unique and threatened biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest where Curu partners farm. Planting trees on farms is controversial in the Atlantic Forest region. Native trees are vital to the ecosystem, but producers see shade as a threat to their coffee production and so to their income. We’re here to change this, with just the right amount of shade to help and not so much as to threaten productivity.

FROM

ERODED EARTH

degraded by intensive monoculture

A handful of earth degraded by the long-term intensive coffee monoculture farming that dominates commercial coffee production. The pesticides and fungicides needed in intensive farming damage the soil organisms that help keep soil naturally fertile. Also essential to fertile soil is organic matter, but since monocultures reduce the organic materials returning to the soil, the earth becomes less fertile over time. Leaving earth exposed by using herbicides to clear plants that might compete with the coffee plants for nutrients reduces the soil organic matter that is essential for fertile soil.
References
Soil aggregation and organic carbon of oxisols under coffee in agroforestry systems, Gabriel Pinto Guimarães; Eduardo de Sá Mendonça; Renato Ribeiro PassoI; Felipe Vaz Andrade, Revista Brasileria de Ciência do Solo 38:278-287, 2014;
Pesticides and Soil Invertebrates: A Hazard Assessment, Tari Gunstone et al, Frontiers in Environmental Science, published 4 May 2021doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2021.643847
Long-Term Coffee Monoculture Alters Soil Chemical Properties and Microbial Communities. Zhao, Q., Xiong, W., Xing, Y. et al., Sci Rep 8, 6116 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-24537-2
hide references

TO
HEALTHY SOIL

HEALTHY SOIL OF AN AGROFOREST

A handful of healthy earth teems with 10 to 100 million diverse organisms that make soil naturally fertile.

Agroforestry improves soil biodiversity, which is essential for agricultural sustainability. Organisms that live in the earth cycle and store nutrients,, store carbon, regulate pests and diseases and their tunnels help soil hold water. Curu agroforests keep earth covered with plants to help stop fertile topsoil being washed away by rain, and the plants themselves are incorporated into the earth as organic matter, which is important to fertility, carbon and water storage.
References
Soil aggregation and organic carbon of oxisols under coffee in agroforestry systems, Gabriel Pinto Guimarães; Eduardo de Sá Mendonça; Renato Ribeiro PassoI; Felipe Vaz Andrade, Revista Brasileria de Ciência do Solo 38:278-287, 2014;
Pesticides and Soil Invertebrates: A Hazard Assessment, Tari Gunstone et al, Frontiers in Environmental Science, published 4 May 2021doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2021.643847
hide references
Prove it - show me
Curu`s impact calculation
SHOW ME CURU`S IMPACT CALCULATION

YOU BREW

WE RENEW!

Prove it - show me Curu`s impact calculation

Our farmers produce over a tonne of green coffee beans per hectare of land that they farm, which translates into around 863kg of roasted coffee per hectare. 1 espresso = 7G of roasted coffee.

THE MATHS

The proportion of a hectare of land needed to create an espresso can be calculated by dividing 7g (0.007kg) by 863kg. Multiply that proportion by the number of square centimetres in a hectare, which is one hundred thousand, and you get 811cm2 of land used to create an espresso.


But because it’s not enough to plant a tree, the tree has to be looked after and grow too, we can’t claim all the positive effects happen straight away, so we count the 10 years it takes an agroforest to mature. That means we divide the 811cm2 by 10. We won’t sell more than 863kg of coffee per hectare of land farmed in partnership with us so that your impact stays measurable.

In Detail:
1 espresso = 7grams roasted coffee
7grams roasted coffee = 8.4 grams green coffee
At least 1040kg of green coffee is grown per hectare of land (often double this)
1040 kg is 1,040,000 grams
8.4 grams / 1,040,000 grams = the proportion of a hectare of land needed to grow an espresso = “P”
There are 100,000,000 square centimetres in a hectare = “H”
P x H = the area needed to grow an espresso
P x H = 811 sqcm
Divide by ten because it takes us this long to grow our agroforests
= 81 sqcm of earth changed per cup
X
SHOW ME CURU`S IMPACT CALCULATION
Our farmers produce over a tonne of green coffee beans per hectare of land that they farm, which translates into around 863kg of roasted coffee per hectare. 1 espresso = 7G of roasted coffee.
X
THE MATHS
The proportion of a hectare of land needed to create an espresso can be calculated by dividing 7g (0.007kg) by 863kg. Multiply that proportion by the number of square centimetres in a hectare, which is one hundred thousand, and you get 811cm2 of land used to create an espresso.


But because it’s not enough to plant a tree, the tree has to be looked after and grow too, we can’t claim all the positive effects happen straight away, so we count the 10 years it takes an agroforest to mature. That means we divide the 811cm2 by 10. We won’t sell more than 863kg of coffee per hectare of land farmed in partnership with us so that your impact stays measurable.
In Detail
In Detail:
1 espresso = 7grams roasted coffee
7grams roasted coffee = 8.4 grams green coffee
At least 1040kg of green coffee is grown per hectare of land (often double this)
1040 kg is 1,040,000 grams
8.4 grams / 1,040,000 grams = the proportion of a hectare of land needed to grow an espresso = “P”
There are 100,000,000 square centimetres in a hectare = “H”
P x H = the area needed to grow an espresso
P x H = 811 sqcm
Divide by ten because it takes us this long to grow our agroforests
= 81 sqcm of earth changed per cup
hide in detail

GROW

A

REVOLUTION!

CURU INCREASES BIODIVERSITY

Curu increases on and off-farm biodiversity, creating new habitat on farms and increasing landscape connectivity to support wildlife. While monoculture farms act as a barrier to much wildlife, trees help. The more shady and diverse, the more agroforests support wildlife near to the level of a natural forest.
References
Matthias De Beenhouwer, Raf Aerts, Olivier Honnay,
A global meta-analysis of the biodiversity and ecosystem service benefits of coffee and cacao agroforestry, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Volume 175, 2013, Pages 1-7, ISSN 0167-8809, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2013.05.003.
hide references
Curu increases on and off-farm biodiversity, creating new habitat on farms and increasing landscape connectivity to support wildlife. While monoculture farms act as a barrier to much wildlife, trees help. The more shady and diverse, the more agroforests support wildlife near to the level of a natural forest.
References
Matthias De Beenhouwer, Raf Aerts, Olivier Honnay,
A global meta-analysis of the biodiversity and ecosystem service benefits of coffee and cacao agroforestry, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Volume 175, 2013, Pages 1-7, ISSN 0167-8809, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2013.05.003.
hide references

THE PLANTATIONS OF OUR CURU PARTNERS

CLIMATE

IMPACT

900%
Agroforests can remove up to 9x as much CO2 from the atmosphere compared to a coffee monoculture, over the course of their lifetime.
References
*M. Schmitt-Harsch, Carbon stocks in coffee agroforests and mixed dry tropical forests in the western highlands of Guatemala, Agroforest Sys 2012 86:141-157
A. Häger, The effects of management on plant diversity and carbon storage in coffee agroforestry systems in Costa Rica, Agroforestry Systems, October 2012
Kristell Hergoualc’h et al., Changes in carbon stock and greenhouse gas balance in a coffee (Coffea arabica) monoculture versus an agroforestry system with Inga densiflora, in Costa Rica, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 2011 doi:10.1016/j.agee.2011.11.018 and Lorena Soto-Pinto et al., Carbon sequestration through agroforestry in indigenous communities of Chiapas, Mexico, Agroforest Syst (2010) 78:39–51
DOI 10.1007/s10457-009-9247-52009
hide references

CURU COUNTERS CLIMATE IMPACT AND HELPS PROTECT EXISTING FORESTS

Agroforests help protect smallholder farmers and old forests by helping keep coffee farms productive despite climate change threats.

A large amount of land currently used for coffee farming is expected to become unproductive due to climate change, up to 56%.
References
Ovalle-Rivera O, Läderach P, Bunn C, Obersteiner M, Schroth G, 2015: Projected Shifts in Coffee Arabica Suitability Among Major Global Producing Regions Due to Climate Change. PloS ONE 10(4).B Magrach A, Ghazoul J, 2015: Climate and Pest-Driven Geographic Shifts in Global Coffee Production: Implications for Forest Cover, Biodiversity and Carbon Storage. PloS ONE 10(7): e0133071. Doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0133071.
hide references


This creates existential risk for smallholder coffee farmers.

It also places remaining forests at risk of being cut down to make way for further coffee farming.

Agroforests:
  • Increase water storage in soil
  • Reduce water loss from plants
  • Decrease on-farm temperatures
to keep land productive despite droughts and extreme temperatures from climate changes
Show details
A. Quandt, Climate change adaptation through agroforestry: opportunities and gaps, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 60, February 2023, 101244
https://www.embrapa.br/busca-de-noticias/-/noticia/19748125/sistemas-agroflorestais-ajudam-a-melhorar-microclima-da-propriedade-rural
show less

MEET OUR

FARMERS

GERALDO

I first planted trees on my coffee farm over 20 years ago with the help of an agroforestry project run by an NGO. It seemed like a good idea, planting trees to take care of the environment. Out of 42 other families, I’m the only one who has kept them. The trees on my farm support a great deal of wildlife, you can’t compare it to a monoculture. We don’t get paid a higher price for the coffee, no matter how beneficial our farming practices, so the other farmers cut their trees down again. Curu is changing this, by helping us turn the monoculture into agroforest, while paying a fair price for our beans. They’re the only ones pushing to do this properly, so the trees stay.

JOSÉ ANTONIO

My production has suffered from climate change in the last few years and I’m looking for a way to protect it. Planting trees is not an obvious solution because they’re usually thought to damage productivity. I understand that trees can help against climate change, but they’re also going to create more work for me. Getting technical advice from Curu gives me more confidence and direct trade gives me a better price for my coffee which makes this worthwhile.
SHOW ME MORE

ÉLICA & CRISTIANO

We stopped using agrochemicals on our coffee plantation in 2014 after Cristiano accidentally got a tiny bit of pesticide in his mouth. He was really ill for a long time, he still hasn’t fully recovered. When we stopped using the chemicals, production fell by over 50%. We can’t afford to get an organic certification or the technical help we need to increase productivity without putting our family’s health at risk. With help from Curu, we’ll be able to increase our productivity and introduce trees to our farm.

VALDEIR

I joined the Curu project because I no longer used agrochemicals on my crops and I really like trees along with coffee. Trees help the environment, help keep water in the soil, attract birds, provide a good environment to work, as well as helping to control pests and increase the quality of the coffee. Curu brings us hope, because our work taking care of the environment is valued.

SOLANGE & NEUTON

We put a lot of work into selecting and drying the best beans to create a specialty coffee last year. We came third in a local coffee quality competition. We were really proud. But no matter what we do, traders won’t pay more for our coffee. Until Curu. Curu offers a better price for our coffee and helps us do more for the planet too.

GERALDO EDUARDO, CIDMAR & GUSTAVO

Curu supports our work as smallholders. My focus has allways been on maximising production since this increases my family’s income. That has meant I always farmed in a coffee monoculture using agrochemicals. I’m interested in producing more sustainably and Curu offers me a way to reward this through direct trade. Curu worked with me to create an agroforest design for my farm which I have started planting, and I’ve joined the Certifica Minas certification scheme for producing without agrotoxins. Farming without agrotoxins is more work and much more complicated for me. Working with Curu I can look after my family and the planet at the same time.

JÚNIOR AND ANGELICA

Our farm is our livelihood. Climate change is seriously affecting it now. In the last few years, production has been hit by drought, heat and hail, sometimes reducing our yields by up to 90%. That’s huge. If it keeps happening, we won’t be able to continue. The local agrochemical companies who provide free technical advice can’t help us. Chemicals won’t solve climate change. But Curu is different. They’re setting us up for the long term. We feel like we can make it with them.

DÁRIO

As family producers we sell to traders who pay the same for our coffee however we produce it. Coffee production is our only source of income. Certifications are expensive to obtain for and the costs for smallholders aren’t compensated by the coffee price, so there is no point in us farming sustainably. With Curu we increase the value of our work and see this reflected in our prices through direct trade.

MAURICIO

It was always my parents’ dream to produce coffee differently, in harmony with the planet. They took part in the same agroforestry project as Geraldo back in 2020. Back then, the NGO running the project told my parents that an organic certification would help them get a higher price for their coffee. It takes three years to obtain organic certification, during which production falls. Organic production reduces yields compared to using conventional agrochemicals. At the same time, the certification itself costs money. In the end, my parents were unable to find buyers for organic certified coffee and were paid the same as they would have been paid for non-organic coffee. Producing in a planet-positive way just made my family worse off. With Curu, we can work in harmony with our planet and get rewarded for that work.

SANDRA & JOÃO CARLOS

We stopped using one really common herbicide because we were worried about its effects on our family’s health. We’re glad that Curu is helping us to get our production certified as agro-toxin free by Certifica Minas – better for our health and the environment. With their help, we’re excited to integrate trees into our coffee production, to have the chance to produce in a way that’s better for the planet and see this rewarded.

WALESSON & GENÉSIO

When we bought our coffee farm, a patch of the plantation was densely scattered with native trees. We didn’t have the heart to cut them down. Other farmers were shocked when they saw it – it’s inefficient compared to the highly regulated and systematised monocultures typical to Brazil. Trees can threaten productivity. If you have the wrong trees or handle them poorly, they cause production to drop. They sometimes need to be pruned to let light through for the coffee. And it’s really difficult to prune a 25 metre high tree safely. But our trees are beautiful. They’re full of birds and bees that wouldn’t be there otherwise and give us shade from the hot sun. Working with Curu, we will stop using agrotoxins on our farm and expand our agroforestry. We’re really happy that Curu is here to support us.

NORIVAL

I like to work differently from others, I want to cultivate various crops on my property to diversify my income. But there’s no market here for coffee produced in a special way. Coffee yields are falling due to climate change, so diversifying crops creates a safety net. Curu will provide support and technical guidance to make this dream a reality. The possibility of selling my coffee at a fair price in direct trade is encouraging.

SHOW ME LESS

FOUNDER

STORY

As a coffee lover and coffee addict I was lucky enough to become a director of the British coffee chain AMT Coffee back in 2020. In my role, I found out more about how most coffee comes from exploiting coffee growers and our home planet. I figured we, that’s you, and me, and everyone we know, could do this better. We could make a cup of coffee do more, do better, do great. For us, for our planet, for future generations. So I ditched my career, learned Portuguese, handed day to day responsibility for our 4 children to my wonderful husband, and made my way out to Brazil, the largest coffee producing country in the world, where people and nature are under threat because of coffee buying decisions made across an ocean. So started the long and difficult journey to make the cup of coffee we are offering you here. My fingers are super-crossed that you like it and that you will join our project by drinking Curu coffee.

Abigail Baumhardt, Founder

MISSION

CURU IS A PARTNERSHIP

We are here to help our home planet, one cup of coffee at a time. Curu is a revolutionary partnership between you, the coffee drinker and smallholder coffee farmers to turn coffee monocultures into biodiverse agroforests certified as agrotoxin free.

POSITIVE CHANGE

We create nature-positive farming in the Atlantic Forest. It’s a biodiversity hotspot, meaning it has a huge number of organisms found nowhere else on earth, at high risk of destruction due to human impact. All of us together can support marginalised farmers, the native ecosystem of the Atlantic Forest, protect standing forests and regenerate land through new coffee agroforests, farming and drinking coffee to help the planet we love. Grow a revolution!

Every cup matters.

WHAT MOST
COFFEE DOES

Smallholder coffee farmers collectively control around 1.5 million hectares of land in Brazil, which produces over 30% of the world’s coffee.

68% of Brazilian coffee farmers are smallholders.
The smallholder farmers who control much of the land often have no incentive to do anything but produce as much coffee as possible, as cheaply as possible. This is because they are marginalised by the coffee market.
The way they farm harms biodiversity and leaves their farms at high risk of becoming unproductive due to the effects of global warming.
Their income is at the mercy of the coffee price set on the futures market of the New York Intercontinental Exchange, so they make losses in some years.

WHAT CURU
COFFEE DOES

Every time you drink a cup of Curu coffee you are directly supporting a smallholder coffee farmer to adopt planet positive agroforestry farming without agrotoxins. By drinking Curu, you create positive change.

FAQ

WHY IS CURU NOT CERTIFIED?

Curu is a journey from unsustainable intensive farming to agforestry farming certified agrotoxin free, to maximise the positive impact your cup of coffee can have. Curu farmers are on track to get agrotoxin free certification from Certifica Minas, a certification designed for smallholder farmers, within three years. Why not faster? Because a sudden stop in using agrotoxins would make yields drop and so farmers’ income, which is not a sustainable approach.

WHY AGROTOXIN FREE NOT ORGANIC?

Organic farming is more expensive and typically less productive than intensive farming. For the expenses, it’s not just the certification fee and the costs of the certifier, it’s also the fertilisers and organic pest control that are more expensive. As to productivity, organic farming is typically less productive than intensive farming. But if we produce less coffee, unless global coffee consumption falls, more land is needed to meet global consumption. But turning land into coffee plantations can mean deforestation.

Moving from monoculture to agrotoxin free agroforestry, we can make the maximum positive difference for Curu farmers and for the environment.

IF AGROFORESTRY WITH NATIVE TREES IS SO GREAT, WHY DON’T FARMERS DO THIS ANYWAY?

Trees are dangerous
Trees are seen as harmful to productivity. They take up space, get in the way during harvest and too much shade will cause production to drop. Trees introduce new management issues and uncertainty, so why plant them?
Trees are expensive
Native trees on productive land can be downright dangerous. This is because they are protected by law in the Atlantic Forest. So if you plant one or let one grow, it is a crime to cut it down, even if it harms your livelihood. Unless you have paid an accredited professional to register it with the state forestry institute. So financially, planting a native tree makes no sense.

Curu provides a community around introducing agroforestry, technical support to manage and register trees, and better pricing through direct trade to compensate the risks. But only with your support!

CURUPIRA

CURU IS INSPIRED BY CURUPIRA

According to the legends of the Tupi-Guarani peoples of the Atlantic Forests, Curupira is the guardian spirit of the rainforest and all that dwells within. With flaming hair and backwards feet, it protects the forest from all who would take without giving in return, keeping the balance on ancient land.

Guarding the balance in nature is needed now more than ever. Where once stood the magnificent Atlantic Forest, cow pastures, mining and coffee farms now dominate the landscape. So we’ve stepped up to take on the role.

Curu connects people and nature through coffee beans, taking and selling the beans and in exchange, returning trees and the habitats they provide above and below ground. Restoring balance in our relationship with the earth, through a cup of coffee.

SHOP

MEDIUM ROAST
Biscuity, caramel, milk chocolate notes. With a hint
of orange and a bit of juicy acidity, to perk you up.
Speciality Brazilian Arabica beans, drum-roasted for a full-bodied flavour.

WHOLE COFFEE BEANS

Perfect for filter coffee and french press and with balanced acidity prepared as an espresso.
STRENGTH
ACIDITY
PLEASE ACCEPT COOKIES TO BUY OUR PRODUCTS

>> CUSTOMIZE HERE
9,90 €
250 g / excl. shipping
29,90 €
1kg / excl. shipping
STRONG ROAST
Dark chocolate, nutty
with a hint of dried cherry.
Speciality Brazilian Arabica beans, drum-roasted for a full-bodied flavour.

WHOLE COFFEE BEANS

Perfect for espresso. Prepared as filter coffee or with a French press, this roast has a light body and low acidity.
STRENGTH
ACIDITY
PLEASE ACCEPT COOKIES TO BUY OUR PRODUCTS
>> CUSTOMIZE HERE
9,90 €
250 g / excl. shipping
29,90 €
1 kg / excl. shipping
IN DEVELOPMENT
New roasts with different
flavour and acidity profiles!
INFO about our packaging | INFO about optimal storaging
Curu packaging is plastic, that doesn’t look sustainable!
All packaging is rubbish, but it’s hard to transport beans without it : )

A lot of coffee packaging that looks sustainable really isn’t. Finding packaging that’s truly sustainable is difficult. Most coffee packaging is made of layers of different materials stuck together. In theory it may be possible to recycle, but in reality it’s difficult to break down, so it isn’t. Many theoretically sustainable and compostable packaging options face the same problem.

We’ve chosen to tackle this practically, by going for a recyclable choice. Our packaging is made of mono-plastic, designed for recycling, so that the material can easily be broken down and reused by recycling plants, in turn reducing demand for raw materials.

If you’re in Berlin and would like to go for a reusable option, we can provide coffee in 3kg buckets, to be returned to us for re-use. Please contact us at hello@curu.earth for this option.
Storage instructions

Store Curu coffee in an airtight container after opening to keep beans at their best.

CONTACT

SAY HELLO


hello@curu.earth

+49 30 300 150 190


Kurfurstendamm 194
10707 Berlin
Germany

Curu GMBH supports the UN sustainability goals.
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