What with a rumbling stomach and a fridge the contents of which, except for that fancy fruit juice over there, read like a shopping list in a bulk-buying, former communist-bloc country, it is difficult enough to get my old writing spirit going. Without coffee, it would be beyond imaginable.
Actually, everything would be difficult without the I-can-do-it attitude that a caffeine hit gives me. And I really do not mind if my breakfasts usually consist of a single flake of cereal or that my lunches have less nutritional value than a boiled pair of shoes - it is coffee which starts my day and keeps it going.
And not just for me. You only realise what a potent brew coffee is if you just imagine what a slump the economy would find itself into if all the cafeterias were to run out of freshly ground or instant coffee. Everyone would go to sleep early, wake up late and suffer a week-long Monday morning. Life would simply slow down, and Valletta and Sliema would become cappuccino-less suburbia.
Coffee is one of life's necessary motion lotions. It is the sudden high; the brief burst of creative speed which burns until a deadline is met. Then we can sit back and relax, with another cuppa. Coffee breaks the ice and, as estate agents very well know, warms a house with that welcoming aroma of home. Coffee is the perfect accompaniment to people-watching in some Valletta cafeteria, and it fuels all conversations, from the animated ones little old ladies have during coffee mornings to the ones you hold inside your head.
With coffee, life is good. So where do the plunging lows, the headaches and bouts of insomnia come in?
It is only recently that studies on the effects caffeine has on our physical and mental health started being published. The time is appropriate because, with cafeterias in every corner encouraging us to lead a cappuccino-munching and espresso-shooting lifestyle, coffee has never had it so good. Since the late 16th century, when Constantinople's citizens began to patronise coffee houses to the arrival of refined Arabica coffee in Europe a century later; the subsequent proliferation of penny universities - so called because a single penny bought you coffee and a flash of news headlines - and the opening of the first Starbucks in Seattle in 1971, coffee has come a long way. In fact, in 2006, Starbucks cashed in a £4 billion revenue. Its main rivals enjoyed a similar expansion in their profit waist.
There are two cups to this caffeine rush. On one hand, there are global empires such as Starbucks, with more than 12,500 outlets worldwide. Such is the power that coffee has gained thanks to globalisation that Costa, an Italian-style coffee chain, last year revealed plans to open more than 300 cafés in China, a tea-drinking nation. Having been to Shanghai myself, I can vouch for the thirst with which the high-earning locals have taken to cafeterias and the cosmopolitan lifestyle these promise with their fat sofas and polished wood.
In an experiment which mirrors that conducted by Morgan Spurlock in Super Size Me, Bryant Simon, an American academic who teaches history at Philadelphia's Temple University, spent a year visiting more than 400 Starbucks coffee shops in several countries. The reason he gives for the remarkable growth of upmarket coffee shops and chains is that they elevate coffee to the status of a desired identity, and satisfy our desires for status. This, in turn, fuels the additional growth of coffee chain empires, with countries such as India, China, Russia, Brazil and Egypt being targeted for the next wave of expansion.
Then there are the other cafeterias which, fiercely independent, have formed a sort of Slow Food movement. In Italy, for instance, coffee is still regarded as a religion. Here, cafeteria chains have yet to get a firm foothold in the market. Instead, espressos, macchiatos and correttos are still largely served by cafeterias which have been run by the same family for generations and which form the pillars on which a healthy social life is built. Outside Italy, these cafeterias, mostly run by Italian immigrants, have had to close.
At the forefront of this anti-homogenisation movement are people who have coffee at heart, such as Adrian Maddox who, in his book, Classic Cafés, launches into a passionate elegy to the working man's, formica-topped tabled cafeterias which are slowly being elbowed out by corporations which can afford to hike-up rent prices. In fact, some of the cafés he mentions in his book have already pulled down the shutters, for ever.
With coffee and bean wars grabbing the news, there is suddenly a glut of studies on the why and how of this black or white, sweetened or with cream, commodity. Traditional studies uphold the claim that an excess of caffeine can be harmful. A number of studies show that caffeine dampens the neurotransmitter adenoside, which first leads to a brief boost of alertness but which, over a long period of time, causes hypersensitivity to pain. Other studies claim that coffee can cause anxiety, worsen irritable bowel syndrome, increase cholesterol levels, raise blood pressure, induce headaches and cause irregular heartbeat. Moreover, caffeine has been linked to miscarriages, and the British Food Standards Agency advises that pregnant women should not down more than three cups a day. Decaffeinated coffee has not been spared the barrage, with a 2005 study that claims that decaf versions can still lead to high levels of cholesterol.
Yet for every negative study, there is one that gets down on its knees in praise of the healthy potion. Given that it contains more antioxidants than fruit or veg, some studies say coffee plays an important part in reducing cancer risks and other fatal diseases. Research conducted by Kasier Permanente in California and published in the US Archives of Internal Medicine concludes that coffee protects from liver disease caused by alcohol. Other studies show that coffee helps in the fight against Parkinson's disease, asthma and gallstones. A Harvard School of Public Health report published in 2004 also argues that women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day were 65 per cent less likely to commit suicide.
A story published in last week's Weekender also takes note of a study which debunks the link between coffee and high blood pressure. In fact, the study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, claims that women who drink more than six cups of coffee per day were no more likely than abstainers to develop high blood pressure over the next decade. The research team says that this is probably because people who drink several cups of coffee every day develop a tolerance to the transient blood-pressure-raising effects of caffeine, while those who drink less coffee less often may remain sensitive.
Yet this storm in a coffee cup does not only concern mental and physical health. The ethical issues involved in the production, transportation and trade-marking of coffee bean varieties are also in the line of fire. NGOs argue against the huge profit margin corporations enjoy, which is only made possible by the lowering of trade prices in Ethiopia and other coffee-growing countries. In fact, it is calculated that the price hike from unroasted bean to a London cappuccino is about 7,000 per cent. In their defence, Starbucks said that it had raised the average price it paid for coffee to $1.42 a pound, 37 per cent above the industry coffee price. Moreover, it has introduced Fair Trade coffee and is using paper cups made in part with recycled materials.
WWF's report, Gone in an Instant, published earlier this year, also raises the alarm at illegally grown coffee in the BBS National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. This practice, WWF claims, endangers endemic species and wildlife living there. Using satellite imaging and monitoring of the coffee trade routes, WWF tracked the illegal cultivation of robusta coffee inside the park. This is then mixed with legal coffee beans and exported to the US, Asia and Europe. The report states that the companies buying the coffee were unaware of its illegal origins.
Such an accumulation of conflicting reports can only be confusing. On one hand, addiction is a strong word. After all, the withdrawal symptoms related to coffee are pretty mild, and if you refrain from drinking the whole of Ethiopia, you cannot overdose on coffee. On the other hand, the coffee industry has been too quick to trumpet findings that say coffee reduces the risk of heart disease and that it protects our body from so many ailments that coffee has suddenly become like some magic potion. As with everything, the trick is to find a balance because, if you are waiting for a definitive answer, you have to drink plenty of coffee to stay awake.
Fair Trade
It is ironic that Ethiopia, the country where coffee began and one of the most important producers of coffee, is also hit by crisis and held in the grip of uncertainty.
In a trade where the product, coffee, can change hands as many as 150 times from the moment it is produced to when it arrives on a supermarket shelf or cafeteria, it is always the farmers who get the smallest cut. Moreover, the global market for coffee is oversupplied by eight per cent, which explains why the price of coffee has fallen by almost 50 per cent in the past three years.
What guarantees the survival of coffee producers in Ethiopia and in other coffee producing countries is Fair Trade.
Fair Trade is about traceability, better prices, decent working conditions and guaranteeing growers in developing countries a fair and stable price for their crops, in order to ensure that they can make a decent living. Fair Trade also insists on local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in poor countries. By requiring companies to pay above the usual prices, Fair Trade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest and weakest producers. Thus, it enables producers to improve their lot and have more control over their lives.
Cafédirect is one of the largest Fair Trade coffee companies. It is certified by the Fair Trade Labelling Organisation, which insists on a number of criteria based on decent wages, health and safety standards, the rights to join trade unions and a guarantee that no child or forced labour are used in the production of coffee. Farmers must also be organised in cooperatives, because together, they can better resist abuse from the middle man. Moreover, inspectors make sure that programmes to ensure environmental responsibility are in place.
Some 98 per cent of trade is still not fair, yet growing awareness and concern about the provenance of food has ensured that in the past few years, Fair Trade recognised labels such as Cafédirect have enjoyed the prospect of increasing sales. In return, Cafédirect puts 86 per cent of their operating profits back into tailor-made support and training initiatives with their growers. Cafédirect also provides an additional amount to be invested for social and economic development within grower organisations and for their local communities.
In Malta, l-Arka, the sales outlet for the Fair Trade cooperative Koperattiva Kummerc Gust, stocks coffee that is certified with a Fair Trade label and made by organisations that are certified as Fair Trade Organisations, such as Cafédirect and altromercato. Coffees include Cafédirect Organic Medium Roast, Fresh Ground, which is certified organic by the Soil Association and the gourmet coffee Cafédirect Organic Machu Picchu Mountain Special, Fresh Ground, which is sourced from Peru. L-Arka also stocks Cafédirect 5065 instant, a premium quality instant Fair Trade coffee. Add hot water, and enjoy.
20070331-lifestyle--coversup.jpgCoffee with character
With a family tree that has deep Sicilian roots, it is clear why the Bezzina family takes coffee seriously. In 1946, Salvatore Bezzina opened Prego cafeteria in South Street, Valletta. At the time, he also ran the Ferry Café in Sliema, which closed down in 1958.
Today, Prego is still a family business. Giorgio and Sunny, Salvatore's sons, run Prego, together with Carmelo Spiteri, their cousin, and Joe Borg, who has been working there since time immemorial.
Giorgio started working at Prego in 1974, when he was 16. "It was always my dream to work in a cafeteria. I love the movement, the people, the conversations and the character our cafeteria has. In fact, we do our best to maintain its 1960s style. The last refurbishment was in 1965, and it has stayed like that. In much the same way, I have kept secret my recipe of how to make a good espresso. I would not tell it to anyone."
Actually, everything would be difficult without the I-can-do-it attitude that a caffeine hit gives me. And I really do not mind if my breakfasts usually consist of a single flake of cereal or that my lunches have less nutritional value than a boiled pair of shoes - it is coffee which starts my day and keeps it going.
And not just for me. You only realise what a potent brew coffee is if you just imagine what a slump the economy would find itself into if all the cafeterias were to run out of freshly ground or instant coffee. Everyone would go to sleep early, wake up late and suffer a week-long Monday morning. Life would simply slow down, and Valletta and Sliema would become cappuccino-less suburbia.
Coffee is one of life's necessary motion lotions. It is the sudden high; the brief burst of creative speed which burns until a deadline is met. Then we can sit back and relax, with another cuppa. Coffee breaks the ice and, as estate agents very well know, warms a house with that welcoming aroma of home. Coffee is the perfect accompaniment to people-watching in some Valletta cafeteria, and it fuels all conversations, from the animated ones little old ladies have during coffee mornings to the ones you hold inside your head.
With coffee, life is good. So where do the plunging lows, the headaches and bouts of insomnia come in?
It is only recently that studies on the effects caffeine has on our physical and mental health started being published. The time is appropriate because, with cafeterias in every corner encouraging us to lead a cappuccino-munching and espresso-shooting lifestyle, coffee has never had it so good. Since the late 16th century, when Constantinople's citizens began to patronise coffee houses to the arrival of refined Arabica coffee in Europe a century later; the subsequent proliferation of penny universities - so called because a single penny bought you coffee and a flash of news headlines - and the opening of the first Starbucks in Seattle in 1971, coffee has come a long way. In fact, in 2006, Starbucks cashed in a £4 billion revenue. Its main rivals enjoyed a similar expansion in their profit waist.
There are two cups to this caffeine rush. On one hand, there are global empires such as Starbucks, with more than 12,500 outlets worldwide. Such is the power that coffee has gained thanks to globalisation that Costa, an Italian-style coffee chain, last year revealed plans to open more than 300 cafés in China, a tea-drinking nation. Having been to Shanghai myself, I can vouch for the thirst with which the high-earning locals have taken to cafeterias and the cosmopolitan lifestyle these promise with their fat sofas and polished wood.
In an experiment which mirrors that conducted by Morgan Spurlock in Super Size Me, Bryant Simon, an American academic who teaches history at Philadelphia's Temple University, spent a year visiting more than 400 Starbucks coffee shops in several countries. The reason he gives for the remarkable growth of upmarket coffee shops and chains is that they elevate coffee to the status of a desired identity, and satisfy our desires for status. This, in turn, fuels the additional growth of coffee chain empires, with countries such as India, China, Russia, Brazil and Egypt being targeted for the next wave of expansion.
Then there are the other cafeterias which, fiercely independent, have formed a sort of Slow Food movement. In Italy, for instance, coffee is still regarded as a religion. Here, cafeteria chains have yet to get a firm foothold in the market. Instead, espressos, macchiatos and correttos are still largely served by cafeterias which have been run by the same family for generations and which form the pillars on which a healthy social life is built. Outside Italy, these cafeterias, mostly run by Italian immigrants, have had to close.
At the forefront of this anti-homogenisation movement are people who have coffee at heart, such as Adrian Maddox who, in his book, Classic Cafés, launches into a passionate elegy to the working man's, formica-topped tabled cafeterias which are slowly being elbowed out by corporations which can afford to hike-up rent prices. In fact, some of the cafés he mentions in his book have already pulled down the shutters, for ever.
With coffee and bean wars grabbing the news, there is suddenly a glut of studies on the why and how of this black or white, sweetened or with cream, commodity. Traditional studies uphold the claim that an excess of caffeine can be harmful. A number of studies show that caffeine dampens the neurotransmitter adenoside, which first leads to a brief boost of alertness but which, over a long period of time, causes hypersensitivity to pain. Other studies claim that coffee can cause anxiety, worsen irritable bowel syndrome, increase cholesterol levels, raise blood pressure, induce headaches and cause irregular heartbeat. Moreover, caffeine has been linked to miscarriages, and the British Food Standards Agency advises that pregnant women should not down more than three cups a day. Decaffeinated coffee has not been spared the barrage, with a 2005 study that claims that decaf versions can still lead to high levels of cholesterol.
Yet for every negative study, there is one that gets down on its knees in praise of the healthy potion. Given that it contains more antioxidants than fruit or veg, some studies say coffee plays an important part in reducing cancer risks and other fatal diseases. Research conducted by Kasier Permanente in California and published in the US Archives of Internal Medicine concludes that coffee protects from liver disease caused by alcohol. Other studies show that coffee helps in the fight against Parkinson's disease, asthma and gallstones. A Harvard School of Public Health report published in 2004 also argues that women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day were 65 per cent less likely to commit suicide.
A story published in last week's Weekender also takes note of a study which debunks the link between coffee and high blood pressure. In fact, the study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, claims that women who drink more than six cups of coffee per day were no more likely than abstainers to develop high blood pressure over the next decade. The research team says that this is probably because people who drink several cups of coffee every day develop a tolerance to the transient blood-pressure-raising effects of caffeine, while those who drink less coffee less often may remain sensitive.
Yet this storm in a coffee cup does not only concern mental and physical health. The ethical issues involved in the production, transportation and trade-marking of coffee bean varieties are also in the line of fire. NGOs argue against the huge profit margin corporations enjoy, which is only made possible by the lowering of trade prices in Ethiopia and other coffee-growing countries. In fact, it is calculated that the price hike from unroasted bean to a London cappuccino is about 7,000 per cent. In their defence, Starbucks said that it had raised the average price it paid for coffee to $1.42 a pound, 37 per cent above the industry coffee price. Moreover, it has introduced Fair Trade coffee and is using paper cups made in part with recycled materials.
WWF's report, Gone in an Instant, published earlier this year, also raises the alarm at illegally grown coffee in the BBS National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. This practice, WWF claims, endangers endemic species and wildlife living there. Using satellite imaging and monitoring of the coffee trade routes, WWF tracked the illegal cultivation of robusta coffee inside the park. This is then mixed with legal coffee beans and exported to the US, Asia and Europe. The report states that the companies buying the coffee were unaware of its illegal origins.
Such an accumulation of conflicting reports can only be confusing. On one hand, addiction is a strong word. After all, the withdrawal symptoms related to coffee are pretty mild, and if you refrain from drinking the whole of Ethiopia, you cannot overdose on coffee. On the other hand, the coffee industry has been too quick to trumpet findings that say coffee reduces the risk of heart disease and that it protects our body from so many ailments that coffee has suddenly become like some magic potion. As with everything, the trick is to find a balance because, if you are waiting for a definitive answer, you have to drink plenty of coffee to stay awake.
Fair Trade
It is ironic that Ethiopia, the country where coffee began and one of the most important producers of coffee, is also hit by crisis and held in the grip of uncertainty.
In a trade where the product, coffee, can change hands as many as 150 times from the moment it is produced to when it arrives on a supermarket shelf or cafeteria, it is always the farmers who get the smallest cut. Moreover, the global market for coffee is oversupplied by eight per cent, which explains why the price of coffee has fallen by almost 50 per cent in the past three years.
What guarantees the survival of coffee producers in Ethiopia and in other coffee producing countries is Fair Trade.
Fair Trade is about traceability, better prices, decent working conditions and guaranteeing growers in developing countries a fair and stable price for their crops, in order to ensure that they can make a decent living. Fair Trade also insists on local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in poor countries. By requiring companies to pay above the usual prices, Fair Trade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest and weakest producers. Thus, it enables producers to improve their lot and have more control over their lives.
Cafédirect is one of the largest Fair Trade coffee companies. It is certified by the Fair Trade Labelling Organisation, which insists on a number of criteria based on decent wages, health and safety standards, the rights to join trade unions and a guarantee that no child or forced labour are used in the production of coffee. Farmers must also be organised in cooperatives, because together, they can better resist abuse from the middle man. Moreover, inspectors make sure that programmes to ensure environmental responsibility are in place.
Some 98 per cent of trade is still not fair, yet growing awareness and concern about the provenance of food has ensured that in the past few years, Fair Trade recognised labels such as Cafédirect have enjoyed the prospect of increasing sales. In return, Cafédirect puts 86 per cent of their operating profits back into tailor-made support and training initiatives with their growers. Cafédirect also provides an additional amount to be invested for social and economic development within grower organisations and for their local communities.
In Malta, l-Arka, the sales outlet for the Fair Trade cooperative Koperattiva Kummerc Gust, stocks coffee that is certified with a Fair Trade label and made by organisations that are certified as Fair Trade Organisations, such as Cafédirect and altromercato. Coffees include Cafédirect Organic Medium Roast, Fresh Ground, which is certified organic by the Soil Association and the gourmet coffee Cafédirect Organic Machu Picchu Mountain Special, Fresh Ground, which is sourced from Peru. L-Arka also stocks Cafédirect 5065 instant, a premium quality instant Fair Trade coffee. Add hot water, and enjoy.
20070331-lifestyle--coversup.jpgCoffee with character
With a family tree that has deep Sicilian roots, it is clear why the Bezzina family takes coffee seriously. In 1946, Salvatore Bezzina opened Prego cafeteria in South Street, Valletta. At the time, he also ran the Ferry Café in Sliema, which closed down in 1958.
Today, Prego is still a family business. Giorgio and Sunny, Salvatore's sons, run Prego, together with Carmelo Spiteri, their cousin, and Joe Borg, who has been working there since time immemorial.
Giorgio started working at Prego in 1974, when he was 16. "It was always my dream to work in a cafeteria. I love the movement, the people, the conversations and the character our cafeteria has. In fact, we do our best to maintain its 1960s style. The last refurbishment was in 1965, and it has stayed like that. In much the same way, I have kept secret my recipe of how to make a good espresso. I would not tell it to anyone."