10 Dirty Little Secrets Of A Starbucks Latte

Starbucks (and its competitors) are some of the largest supporters of industrial dairy production. While we often talk about the unsustainable practices related to growing coffee, no one really takes the time to talk about the other ¾ of your latte and all of its dirty little secrets.

1. Starbucks isn’t a coffee company.

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It’s a milk company... A Venti Latte at Starbucks contains only 2 oz. of coffee and 18 oz. of milk. In fact, every year Starbucks purchases enough milk to fill 155 Olympic swimming pools. That is a whole “latte” milk.

2. The top (not so) secret plan to take over NYC.

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Manhattan has 9 Starbucks per square mile. Additionally, there are about 21,000 cafes in over 65 countries around the world.

3. Who ate all the antibiotics???......Mooooo!

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80% of all antibiotics in the US go to livestock. Due to the crowded and unsanitary conditions, cows are at a greater risk of developing infections such as mastitis. The scary thing is that a majority of antibiotics used are not even treating infections, but rather a way for the industry to cross its fingers and hope the cows don’t get sick.

4. “Happy 6th Birthday!” heard no factory farm dairy cow ever.

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Though a dairy cow’s natural lifespan is 15-20 years (when raised on pasture), cows raised in factory farms only live 4-5 years before they are slaughtered for hamburger meat. The modern dairy industry is all about efficiency and production. Once a dairy cow’s production levels off they are immediately sent to the slaughterhouse.

5. Sh** happens…a lot!!

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Just one industrial dairy factory farm produces as much poop as a major American city, like LA. That means every single day the same amount of poop that the population of LA flushes down the toilet is what comes out of one dairy factory farm. In total there are over 4.8 million dairy cows in factory farms with the majority of dairy factories concentrated in just a few states: CA, ID, TX, NM, and WI.

6. Enjoy those 3 pumps of pesticides in your Pumpkin Spice Latte.

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Industrial factory farm dairy cows are fed a diet of crops that were genetically engineered to resist the spraying of pesticides. The use of GMO crops has led to a 527 million lb increase in herbicide use in the US. So pretty much they are doing the exact opposite of what they are suppose to.

7. It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s superweeds and superbugs!

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The overuse (and misuse) of pesticides and antibiotics has created a survival of the fittest competition, one in which only the biggest and baddest weeds and bacteria win out. But what happens when our current pesticides and antibiotics no longer work? This is happening. That’s why big biotech companies are turning to even more harmful chemicals like 2,4-D (half of the chemical cocktail, Agent Orange) to try to make up for years of bad behavior. To top it off, we’ll soon see Duo Enlist (a combo meal of 2,4-D and glyphosate) pumped into our fragile ecosystem because we’re on a pesticide treadmill. Super size it, please!

8. Dairy cows get served up daily meals of GMOs. Yum!

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Agrochemical and seed companies constantly claim GMOs are the key to feeding the world, but the reality is 35% of GE corn goes to feed livestock. Not only do these crops have a huge impact on the environment, but they are not what cows are supposed to eat. Corn and soy mess with a cow’s digestion and result in large quantities of methane emissions. Plus, cows probably don’t want to eat food laced with pesticides either.

9. Got your Monsanto Milk Moustache??

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Of those genetically engineered crops, one company rules them all: Monsanto. It is the largest seed company, and one of the top 5 agrochemical companies in the world. It, along with a few other companies, control the market; and ultimately, it controls the very milk you pour into your coffee (or get in your latte) each morning.

10. Starbucks kept organic milk in the “cupboard under the stairs”.

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Once upon a time, Starbucks sold organic milk as an option for your latte; but just like Harry’s room, all evidence of its existence was hidden out of site. As one of the top purchasers of milk in the country, Starbucks has the capacity (and $$) to affect positive change and transition to organic milk. Much smaller companies are doing it and charging less (and even serving organic coffee) than you are already paying for your Monsanto Latte.