Arbor Day Specialty Coffee Earns Top Score of Shade-Grown Blends In Coffee Review's August Cupping

Nebraska City, Neb. (Aug. 18, 2009) – Want a cup of the best-tasting, shade-grown coffee in North America? Then try the Arbor Day Foundation's Fair Trade, organic coffee that's grown under the canopy of the rain forest.

Arbor Day Specialty Coffee was awarded a superb score of 92 by Coffee Review in the August Cupping. No other shade-grown coffee scored higher than Arbor Day Specialty Coffee that was made from beans grown by the Mexico Ismam Co-op in Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico. Coffee Review, an independent coffee judge, is considered the world's leading coffee buying guide.

Coffee Review, in its assessment of Arbor Day Specialty Coffee, commented: "In the cup softly balanced acidity, medium body. The pungent fruit reads as a cocoaish chocolate in the cup, with hints of lavender and molasses. The cocoa in particular carries into a rich finish. ... A coffee with absolutely impeccable environmental and social credentials and a distinctive cup."

Coffee lovers can also make a difference in preserving the world's rain forests just by drinking the Arbor Day Foundation's shade-grown, organic coffee. Every time someone drinks a cup of Arbor Day coffee, a portion of the rain forest is preserved as part of the Foundation's Rain Forest Rescue program. Since 1992, more than two billion square feet of the world's rain forests have been preserved through the Rain Forest Rescue program.

Arbor Day Coffee is shade-grown, which saves trees from clear-cutting practices that destroy the rain forests of the world. By growing coffee under the canopy of the rain forest, farmers can eliminate chemicals used in sun-grown coffee plantations. This helps preserve the world's rain forests and the wildlife and plant species that call it home and helps to create a superior cup of coffee.

For more information about Arbor Day Specialty Coffee, go to www.arborday.org/coffee.

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About the Arbor Day Foundation: The Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit, conservation and education organization of nearly one million members, with a mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information on the Foundation and its programs can be found at arborday.org.