When Augusto Carneiro started Nossa Familia Coffee, it was with the deep-rooted desire to share and honor his family’s rich coffee tradition in Brazil. This legacy spans over a century. The vision was to collaborate with his family to handpick the finest of their harvest and compensate them with a premium price, ensuring the family’s coffee legacy for generations to come. As Carneiro connected with farmers from diverse coffee origins, who are now friends and trusted partners, he extended the same approach: fostering enduring, mutually beneficial relationships. Nossa Familia is a family business centered on “exceptional coffee rooted in exceptional relationships.
When I spoke with Carneiro, his appreciation of family history was evident. He spoke of his early experiences living in Rio de Janeiro and eagerly waiting for summer vacation so that he could travel to the family farm. Carneiro’s great-grandfather and three brothers planted the family’s first coffee crop in 1890. Nestled in the Brazilian highlands, known as ‘Sul de Minas,’ the farm is inland from Rio de Janeiro, where Carneiro grew up. He fondly refers to it as a summer camp where he could hang out with his 27 cousins, ride horses, rise at 5:30 am daily to have his cup of coffee, and be ready to explore. As is always true on a farm, there was lots to do. Besides coffee, the farm also produced cattle, corn, potatoes, eucalyptus, and other foods such as fruit orchards, rice, beans and chickens.
Edible Portland’s mission is to bring you the stories of the people and places committed to the earth’s health and its occupants. At Nossa Familia, sustainability is the bedrock of every aspect of the business. Since its inception, it has been a B Corp Certified coffee roaster, a testament to Carnieros and his family’s commitment. From a family-trade coffee business, they evolved to feature coffees from around the world. They only purchase coffee that scores 84 points or above on the Specialty Coffee Association cupping scale. When they source green coffee, they do so through transparent, familiar channels. They meet with farmers, visit their farms, and maintain an open and communicative relationship. They only work with responsible and trusted importers who consistently pay farmers a fair, sustainable price for their coffee. They also identify and support farm improvement projects and community development Needs.
The company purchases coffees that may be certified Organic, Utz certified (part of the Rainforest Alliance), BSCA certified, Board of Certified Professionals certified, or Fair Trade America certified. When they purchase from farms/cooperatives that do not carry certifications, choosing not to certify due to financial or political reasons, they use their relationship with the farm to ensure the use of environmentally and socially conscious methods. Nossa Familia Coffee is a certified Organic handling facility by Oregon Tilth.
Another way Nossa Familia Coffee chooses sustainability is through its eco-friendly roasting practices. As Carneiro took us on a facility tour, we were impressed with the Loring Smart Roast machines. Nossa Familia’s is a Loring Smart Roast S35 Kestrel and an S70 Peregrine, designed and built in Santa Rosa, California, utilizing components manufactured in the United States. Loring roasters use 80% less energy and emit 80% less emissions than a standard roaster. In 2015, Nossa Familia also switched to 100% renewable (wind) electricity through Portland General Electric for their facility.
We noticed on our arrival that there were a number of bikes and bike racks in the parking lot. Nossa Familia employees are encouraged to commute car-free with subsidized annual bike tune-ups and stipends for bicycle/pedestrian foul-weather or safety gear. They have ongoing relationships with and lend practical and financial support to local nonprofit organizations, including The Street Trust, p:ear, and Community Cycling Center. They all work to promote bicycling as a safe, viable transportation option and recreational activity in the Portland area.
The coffee industry is inherently wasteful, with practices like single-use paper to-go cups and non-recyclable coffee bag materials contributing to environmental harm. Rather than accepting these norms, Nossa Familia traded compostable bags in favor of renewable and recyclable materials. The 12 oz Nossa Familia coffee bags now feature SugarFlex™, an innovative material that is durable and recyclable in plastic collection streams. It is also carbon-negative, crafted from a renewable plant-based byproduct that actively reduces carbon emissions. Due to its inert nature, if Sugarflex™ ends up in landfills, it gradually reforms into biogenic carbon instead of generating greenhouse gas emissions. They’ve also revamped their 5 lb packaging, comprised of 85% post-consumer plastic, certified safe for food contact. This packaging also boasts a 50% smaller carbon footprint than plastics made from fossil fuels. While not all their bags have transitioned from compostable to recyclable materials, they are working hard to make it so.
An additional step they’ve taken to reduce waste is to implement a 25¢ upcharge for getting a disposable to-go cup and a 25¢ discount for bringing a reusable mug. Since implementing this new policy, there has been a notable decrease in the use of to-go cups at the cafés and a significant rise in customers opting to bring their own reusable mugs. This initiative has not only reduced waste but also encouraged customers to think about their environmental impact. Initially, this practice only existed at the Seven Corners location. They expanded the to-go cup upcharge to all their cafes on Earth Day 2019. As a policy, Nossa Familia prioritizes local and sustainablyminded vendors, especially fellow Certified B Corporation companies, such as Portland-based Alpenrose Dairy. They offer a variety of alternative kinds of milk, and their honey comes from B Corp Certified GloryBee Honey. Their teas and chai come from Bend’s Metolius Artisan Tea. Their cafés often use makers, such as Fieldwork Design, Wolf Ceramics, ECOpdx, Viridian Hardwoods, Fully, and The Joinery. They also use reclaimed & second-hand furniture and fixtures for the offices and roastery space.
Not content with earth-friendly practices, Nossa Familia’s Giveback Program makes financial contributions and donates coffee to nonprofits working to alleviate poverty and improve people’s livelihood locally and in coffee-growing countries. Since their inception in 2004, they’ve contributed over 1% of annual gross profits resulting in $600,000 in cash and in-kind to nonprofits and charitable causes supporting communities, youth, and the environment. Additionally, Nossa Familia encourages volunteering. To help enable their employees to volunteer in the community, they offer all permanent employees 16 hours of paid volunteer time annually. They organize staff volunteer opportunities and provide flexibility in scheduling to allow their employees to volunteer in the community.
Nossa Familia is deeply committed to the health of the planet and the health and well-being of Portland and its residents.
Taste their coffee at one of the cafe locations:
2007 SE Division St, 1350 NW Lovejoy S
1633 SE 3rd Ave.
Photos courtesy of Nossa Familia
