12 Unusual Coffee Facts
Ever wondered what the down low was on your favorite caffeinated morning beverages? Well, we've gathered the information, did our homework and have come up with 12 random and unusual coffee facts!
1. COFFEE BEANS SENT BRAZILIAN ATHLETES TO THE OLYMPICS.
In 1932, Brazil couldn't afford to send its athletes to the Olympics in Los Angeles. So they loaded their ship with coffee and sold along the way.
2. COFFEE COULD ONE DAY FUEL YOUR CAR.
Researchers have had great success in converting coffee into biodiesel. Best of all, used grounds work just as well.
3. The Arabs discovered coffee, but were jealous of their discovery and refused to allow fertile coffee seeds to leave their country. However a 17th-century Muslim pilgrim, Baba Budan, smuggled seven seeds out of Arabia and planted them in India. It is said that all the world’s coffee came from these seven seeds.
4. An estimated four out of five Americans start their day with a coffee.
5. During WWII, American soldiers were known as G.I. Joes. Because they drank large amounts of coffee, the drink soon earned the popular nickname “a cup of Joe.
6. One cup of black coffee only has one calorie.
Adding sweeteners, cream, and other mix-ins can quickly jack up the total. A venti Java Chip Frappuccino from Starbucks contains 88 grams of sugar and 600 calories — more than a McDonald's Big Mac!
7. In the ancient Arab culture there was only one way a woman could legally divorce: If her husband didn't provide enough coffee.
8. Teddy Roosevelt is and was the greatest American coffee drinker, consuming a gallon a day. But you probably shouldn't attempt to do that.
9. Other than crude oil, coffee is the world's most widely traded global commodity.
10. The coffee industry employs approximately 25 million people, mostly farmers.
11. THE COFFEE BREAK HAS A HOMETOWN.
Stoughton, Wisconsin bills itself as the place where the coffee break originated. Every year the town holds a Coffee Break Festival to celebrate this major contribution to the days of workers everywhere. According to local lore, the area’s coffee-loving Norwegian immigrants created the breaks in the late 19th century.
12.Coffee makes a long trip. Green (not yet roasted) coffee beans fill burlap bags and are exported to the countries in which they will be roasted. The United States is not a common place to grow coffee; in fact, the U.S. is the largest importer of green coffee beans in the world.