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Hong Kong coffee firm Alchemy is sourcing beans from sustainable farms for its environmentally friendly brew

  • Hong Kong-based Alchemy chooses producers that ‘are doing the right thing’ for the environment, founder Ambrose Peter Law says
  • Nescafe to invest more than US$990 million by 2030 to encourage coffee farmers supplying it to use more sustainable farming methods

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Alchemy founder Peter Ambrose Law, at the firm’s roastery in Hong Kong. Photo: Jonathan Wong
Martin Choi
Local coffee chains have been looking to source beans from producers using sustainable farming practices to reduce the environmental impact of one of the world’s favourite beverages and to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Hong Kong-based Alchemy, a coffee roastery and cafe chain, has been choosing producers that “are doing the right thing” for the environment, according to founder Ambrose Peter Law.

“We believe that if we pick farmers that are doing the right thing environmentally, this will generate the right movement even for farmers that are not yet doing the right thing,” Law said.

An average cup of coffee, or 125ml, requires 132 litres of water, according to calculations by the Water Footprint Network. Coffee is important in a broader sense also because, according to the Fairtrade Foundation in the UK, around 125 million people across the globe depend on coffee for their livelihoods.
The Alchemy roastery in Hong Kong’s Kwai Chung district. Photo: Jonathan Wong
The Alchemy roastery in Hong Kong’s Kwai Chung district. Photo: Jonathan Wong

The firm sources its coffee beans directly from origin and visits farmers on site. Alchemy sources its Colombia Erazo blend from a farm employing equipment that uses 90 per cent less water compared to traditional processing methods. The farm also reduces pollution from waste water.

In Brazil, Alchemy sources its Ferreira blend from a farmer who retains a quarter of his farm – or around 34 hectares – for forest conservation purposes to contribute to the biodiversity of the area. Law met these producers while visiting the regions on sourcing trips and while judging competitions globally.

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