Specialty coffee roasters Ona Coffee have made the switch to solar, powering their roastery and head office with 100 per cent renewable energy.
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The solar panels, installed throughout 2019, were part of a long-term plan by the team at Ona Coffee to reduce its carbon footprint and work towards more sustainable practice, says general manager Tom Beaumont.
"Sustainability and more energy-conscious practices are at the forefront of our immediate goals," he says.
"As part of the values we hold at Ona Coffee, we are always trying to develop innovative ways to do what we love - at the same time, we feel a responsibility to ensure that we are taking care of the planet as we do this."
The newly installed panels, which cover the entire roof of Ona Coffee's head premises in Canberra, power the roastery, offices and adjacent café.
They escaped Monday's catastrophic hailstorm, which hit Fyshwick hard, relatively intact.
Founder of Ona Coffee and former world barista champion Sasa Sestic believes the switch to solar is also part of a connection to origin.
"Over several years, we have been investing in ways to make coffee farms more sustainable, starting from the soil and trees through to post-harvest techniques such as carbonic maceration, which uses significantly less water for fermentation," he said.
"However, we also need to acknowledge that on the consumer end of the coffee chain, there are many ways we can be more sustainable."
In addition to the switch to solar at the Canberra facility, Ona Coffee is looking to bring its sun-charged ethos to its new premises in Melbourne, set to open in 2020.
"We're looking at every single aspect of the planning, building and operations of our Brunswick site to ensure that we are as sustainable as possible," Beaumont says.
"Part of this will be adopting solar power for our energy use, as well as using a range of recycled and repurposed materials.
Ona Coffee's solar energy is just one project the progressive company is taking as part of long-term sustainability measures says Ona marketing manager, Jordan Montgomery.
"From our connection to origin through to our partnerships with our customers across Australia and the world, we're putting measures into practice to make coffee more sustainable," he says.
"We can't leave these decisions and actions for future generations to deal with.
"It's our responsibility to act on issues of climate, waste and energy now."
In 2019 Ona became one of the first Canberra businesses to use Green Caffeen reusable cups.
Green Caffeen is a swap-and-go system where customers can sign up via a mobile app and use and return the cups free of charge to any participating cafe across the country.
They also use biodegradable straws and takeaway cups but there's a misconception these will break down.