The café au lait is made using brewed coffee and steamed milk, in a typical ratio of one part coffee to one part steamed milk with no froth or foam on top (coffee shops will sometimes add it though). The coffee base is usually made with a French press or a drip, the milk must always be steamed. The café au lait is not the same as white coffee which is brewed coffee with cold milk or powdered whitener added.

What does ‘café au lait’ mean?
Café au lait hails from France and simply translates to ‘coffee with milk’. The term ‘au lait’ means to prepare with milk. It’s usually prepared with half coffee and half heated milk, making it the perfect coffee to sip slowly.

Interestingly, the café au lait has many variations around the world. In Poland it’s known as the ‘kawa biala’, in Germany as ‘milchkaffee’, in Hungary as ‘tejeskávé’, in Dutch it’s a ‘koffie verkeerd’ and in Brazil ‘café com leite’. One of the most interesting distinct versions of the Café au Lait is found in New Orleans where the coffee is combined with chicory for a strong, bitter flavour that’s also thicker in consistency. This variation dates back to the American Civil War when coffee was scarce, mixed with chicory to make it last longer.

Healthy soil and forests are among the most effective means of reducing carbon in the Earth's atmosphere. To address the extensive NESCAFÉ^® supply chain, which includes thousands of farms and transportation networks, our goal is to safeguard both soil and forests in order to bring long-term sustainable change.

Good soil does more than grow good coffee, it captures carbon, reduces erosion, and requires less synthetic fertiliser. As a large part of greenhouse gas emission on farms comes from fertilisers, NESCAFÉ^® is helping optimize fertiliser use by providing training to farmers. From Vietnam to Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia, NESCAFÉ^®'s field programs have helped to improve farming methods, resulting in farms using the optimum combinations of synthetic and organic fertilisers, and reducing the use of agrichemicals. Simply put, healthy soil helps to grow a more sustainable coffee.

In Australia, our coffees are made from 100% responsibly sourced coffee beans, made possible through supporting better working conditions for farm families and workers, and the promotion of sustainable crop growth.

By 2025, NESCAFÉ^® aims to reach this milestone globally. For the sustainability program, having thousands of farms across five continents monitored is quite a big task, however at this scale, doing the right thing can make a world of difference.

It takes more than just coffee trees to grow good coffee. Promoting biodiversity is vital for healthy soil. In Thailand and Indonesia, coffee farmers plant betel nuts, peppers, chilies, and avocados. A greater variety of trees attracts a greater number of insects that pollinate fields and support local wildlife.

More shade reduces the need for herbicides and helps enrich the soil's organic matter through the additional leaves that are shed. Trees reduce carbon emissions, control soil erosion, recycle nutrients and protect watersheds. With more crops grown, farmers can sell more products and provide food for local families. This is all made possible thanks to the biodiversity that we encourage in farming practices.

For many, coffee isn’t just a beloved drink, it’s an artform. NESCAFÉ^® wants to inspire the creative minds of aspiring young connoisseurs with the training to become professional baristas.

Meet Comfort Dorkutso, a Cameroonian woman who is no stranger to hard work. To help her family, she had to leave school early to find a job. The only position available was as a door-to-door revenue collector.

Water is one of the world’s most precious natural resources and some of our coffee requires a lot of it to grow. At NESCAFÉ^®, we value the water needs of local communities. Today, NESCAFÉ^® is helping farmers grow coffee with solutions that aim to protect water resources. In Vietnam, we’ve helped farmers use 50% less water for irrigation than previous official practices, helping maintaining the same productivity, and provided smart weather apps to tell when to turn on the taps and when to turn them off to help conserve water for their villages.

In our nearby coffee factories, we’ve helped to improve water efficiency and saved the equivalent of over thousands Olympic sized swimming pools of water every year. Using less water in coffee production helps improve water conservation in local communities, and support the protection of the water cycle. That’s why NESCAFÉ^® aims to continue to help farmers do more with less water.

NESCAFÉ^® wants to keep coffee fresh, and our customers informed, while making a positive impact on the planet. NESCAFÉ^® aims to provide packaging materials such as jars, cartons, capsules, and sachets that create less packaging waste, following Nestlé's commitment: 95% of our plastic packaging will be designed for recycling by 2025.

NESCAFÉ^® aspires to change in how its coffee is grown, sourced, manufactured, packaged, and consumed. Every time you enjoy your favourite NESCAFÉ^®, you are supporting a global initiative to help the environment and inspire others to do the same. Every day, NESCAFÉ^® is on a journey towards a circular economy.

Reduce waste and save money by filing a resuable travel mug with your favorite NESCAFÉ^® coffee before you leave the house. Treat yourself to a coffee break on the move!

It might take a small extra step, but recycling can makes a difference. Did you know that your NESCAFÉ^® Blend 43 and NESCAFÉ^® Gold glass jars and caps are recyclable?

So, when it comes to recycling, a little really can go a long way. Please check the instructions on each pack for the best ways to recycle your favourite NESCAFÉ^® products.

Coffee is thought to date back to 800 A.D., where it was discovered by 9th century goat herders. It was said that they noticed their goats eating the plant and afterwards it appeared like they were ‘dancing’. Fascinated by the results, the goat herder tried them himself and discovered that it made him excitable too.

This may surprise you, but infamous composer, Beethoven, loved coffee! He was apparently quite obsessive about it, using precisely 60 beans per cup and would spend time counting out each and every bean.

Where Brazil may grow the most, Finland drinks the most coffee! On average they drink 12kg per person, per year which works out to an impressive 1,680 cups on average each a year. Now how’s that for a coffee fact?

In 1932, the Brazilian government didn’t have enough money to send their athletes to the Olympics, so they funded the trip by selling coffee. They loaded up a ship of coffee beans, hoping to sell it to California on their way. We love this heart-warming coffee fact!

Two types of coffee bean are used for drinking; Robusta and Arabica. Arabica has lower acidity and smoother taste, whereas Robusta is more acidic and bitter.

Once caffeine has been removed (for decaf coffee), the caffeine will usually be sold to soft drink or pharmaceutical companies.

Coffee wasn’t always as loved as it is today. In the 18th century, governments tried to ban the beverage because it was thought to stimulate radical thinking. Our favourite drink was actually banned in Sweden for a while in 1746, along with anything related to it – including cups and saucers!

Yes, you heard right! The largest cup of coffee ever made was 26,939.22 litres. The brew made in Mexico, on 10 December 2022, took 300 kg of coffee and currently holds the Guinness World Record.

Every good recipe requires care, attention, and accurate measurements. Measuring NESCAFÉ^®’s impact on the ground starts with assessing net farm income and measuring farmer livelihoods from coffee and other crops. Next, comes a measure of our impact on farming families. Finally, aspects like soil health, biodiversity and water are measured to track the carbon reduction.

Link:
https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/business/tailored-services/partnerships-for-success-monitoring-and-evaluation-with-NESCAFÉ^®/

Through monitoring and evaluation, NESCAFÉ^® did more than mitigate the impact of a leaf rust crisis in Mexico in 2014. We then spoke to farmers to learn what else we could do. NESCAFÉ^® provided 37 million leaf rust resistant coffee plantlets to over 33,000 coffee farmers facing a major outbreak.