Our goal is to be the most sustainable coffee festival in the world, not just talk about it. We believe that if we can’t produce an event without causing damage to the environment, people and community around it, then it’s not worth doing.   

But how are we actually doing it? 

REDUCE

Reducing our impact is the foundation for our sustainability platform.  We want to put our money where our mouth is and implement meaningful initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint.

1. Carbon Budget

   a. In 2024, we introduced a carbon budget for our production team. Just like we plan around finances, we now plan around emissions. Every decision — from transportation to materials — must account not only for cost, but for its environmental impact.

   b. Looking ahead to 2026:

   Our goal is to reduce the festival’s internal emissions from 10.7 tons CO₂ to 7.9 tons CO₂

2. Vegetarian/Non-Dairy
   a. No meat products will be permitted on site.
   b. Only plant-based milk drinks may be used or served on-site.
   c. Plant-based milk from our event sponsor will be available for free for all exhibitors.
   d. Breaches of this policy will result in exclusion from future events.
   e. All exhibitors and suppliers must be able to offer plant-based options.

3. Waste Program
   a. All waste (recycling and general) will be weighed before being disposed of throughout the whole festival (including install and pack down).
   b. Exhibitors will be given a waste allowance of 1kg of General Waste per m2.  Producing and disposing of waste up to this amount will be free of charge.[1]
   c. For every additional kg over this allowance, there will be a charge of 200kr /kg.
   d. Properly sorted recycling will not be charged.
   e. All waste amounts will be publicly available information.
   f. In 2026, no trash bins or recycling will be provided automatically to exhibitors. There will be bins, containers and other supplies available at the Festival Services at an additional cost.
   g. Trash can be disposed of at the Recycling station.

   h. Only clear trash bags are permitted in the venue.   These will be provided free of charge to all exhibitors.

   i.  Goal for 2026: Keep total amount of general waste from event to under 200kg.

4. No Single-Use
   a. No single-use items may be brought into the venue.
   b. This includes paper, plastic, or any other type of non-re-usable cup, sleeves, trays/holders, cutlery, straws, or mixers.
   c. Paper towels and serviettes are okay as long as they are biodegradable.
   d. Any breaches of this policy by exhibitors will result in a fee of 1500kr per incident + exclusion from future editions of the festival.
   e. We encourage all attendees to bring their own cups to the festival.

   f. For those that can’t or forget their cup, 90ml ceramic cups will be available to borrow upon entering the festival, which can be used to sample coffee.
   g. The cups can be rinsed out at one of the rinsing stations or swapped out for a clean cup when necessary.
   h. For exhibitors bringing their own re-usable cup systems, dishwashing services will be available at a designated area.
   i. Note on Sampling: Any food or drink that is consumed on-site needs to be consumed without using single-use packaging or implements.

5. Accessible Venue
   a. Our venue must be accessible by public transport and be centrally located to ensure easy access.
   b. The choice of Gothenburg as a host city is strategically located in a central point between Norway and Denmark.

   c. We believe everyone should be able to enjoy the festival fully, regardless of accessibility needs. That’s why we design the layout with inclusion in mind — from ramps and clear paths to accessible restrooms and viewing areas — so that all guests can move freely and comfortably throughout the venue.

6. Re-usable signage & Event material
   a. Aside from a single banner for this year’s partners, we aim to produce ZERO single-use signage for the event. This excludes recyclable signage like cardboard and paper.

   b. We prioritize second-hand, repurposed, or borrowed furniture and materials — especially for stages and event areas — to reduce environmental impact.

7. Recycled and low-impact printed marketing material
   a. All marketing material (flyers and posters) must be printed on the most sustainable paper option with consideration for how to design with the least amount of ink use possible.

[1] Total general waste in 2025: 109kg for 502m2 of booth space.

1. BYO Cups
   a. We encourage everyone who attends the festival to bring their own cup to Nordic Coffee Fest. Not only is it great practice for day-to-day coffee purchases, but we will have rinsing stations throughout the festival for you to clean your cup between samples.

2. Electricity
   a. The electricity usage of each exhibitor will be measured during the festival. This information will be public and may be released.
   b. Exhibitors are encouraged to select electronic equipment with eco modes to ensure the most efficient use of energy as possible.
   c. Running a two-day coffee festival is energy intensive, and powering down and restarting all systems each morning actually uses more energy than maintaining a consistent overnight supply. So, for efficiency, power will remain on overnight. However, we ask everyone to turn off any individual equipment or appliances that don’t need to stay on.

3. Recycling/Trash Management
   a. We are going to almost completely remove trash bins from the event except for in two locations: the food court and exhibitor services.  This helps exhibitors and attendees alike to be more considered with what trash they receive and dispose of and allows us to offer a full range of recycling sorting solutions at each space.

4. Transport
   a. Our venue is located literally a stone’s throw from Central station, meaning that there is no excuse to not take a bus, tram or a stroll to the event. Since Gothenburg isn’t exactly known for its mild, predictable weather, we’ve made it easy to find the driest and most convenient way to reach the event—just visit our website for all the details.

5. Measuring everything
   a. We already diligently track as many inputs into the event as possible.  For those enviro-nerds reading this, we measure between scope 2-3. Specifically, we define our impact as any emission or impact created that wouldn’t have been created had we not staged the event
   b. This data is collected and released as a Sustainability Report publicly on our website after the event.

6. Freight
   a. To encourage more travel by train, we have extended the window for delivery and pick up of goods and equipment to and from Nordic Coffee Fest. This gives exhibitors greater flexibility, making it easier and safer to coordinate logistics without needing to rely on cars or vans.
   b. Shipments will be accepted from Wednesday to Monday the week of the festival.

7. Merch and Give away
   a. While we value your promotional efforts, please consider reducing excess, throw-away giveaways to minimize environmental impact.  So, in simple words, don’t give away anything that will end up in the bin!

8. Suppliers
   a. Sustainability is embedded in all supplier agreements. All suppliers are expected to align with our environmental goals, including responsible sourcing, low-impact travel, waste management, and mindful on-site practices.
   b. All food vendors are required to submit a brief sustainability report as part of their participation. This report should explain the reasoning behind their choice of ingredients, including any efforts made to reduce environmental impact through sustainable sourcing, packaging, and food waste reduction. 

   c. All cleaning supplies used by suppliers must be organic and or certified.

9. Equality
   a. We will ensure our leaders and managers have competency in identifying and handling any situations of discrimination and there is clear communication about who these people are and the process to follow in any cases of discrimination.
   b. As organizers, we have completed a course on discrimination to help ensure a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment for everyone at the festival.
   c. We strive to keep a diverse representation among staff, speakers, panellists, and special guests, to reflect the perspectives and experiences of the attendees.

1. Food and drink:
   a. We want our choice of food and drink vendors to first and foremost impress you with the quality.  That is also happens to be local, sustainable and considered can be an added plus – because we love food and drink too much for it to be bland.

2. Seeing the impact of your choices
   a. We want to make it easy for everyone to understand how their actions add up. By clearly showing the environmental costs linked to things like your travel, hotel stay, or even your daily coffee, we hope to inspire you to make small changes that, when added together, can make a big difference.

3. Looking after people
   a. Sustainability isn’t just about carbon emissions – it is also about people.
   b. Ordna Event Agency pays a living wage to all employees, provides health and wellness benefits (friskvårdbidrag), pension payments (Tjänstepension), flexible work hours and location, and runs on a four-day work week.
   c. All volunteers and staff receive a proper meal when working the event.
   d. We pledge to not use and abuse people's time, energy or skills in pursuit of profit.

4. Learning
   a. A big part of our coffee festival is to create a space for people to learn more about one of the biggest commodities in the world – coffee.  If you come to the festival and learn just one small thing about how you can buy better sourced and produced coffee, then we will be so happy.  If you learn more than one thing – you get a gold star.

5. Sustainability Awards
   a. Starting in 2025 we will be measuring and evaluating the environmental impact per exhibitor.  This will allow us to award awards for exhibitors who go above and beyond with their sustainability actions.
   b. After the festival we will be publicly awarding exhibitors for their efforts in reducing their waste, travel emissions, general carbon emissions and for novel efforts in creating and communicating a sustainable presence at the festival.

6. Communication

   a. An important part of our sustainability work is actually showing what we’re doing behind the scenes! We do our best to share our efforts — both during the planning process and at the festival — in ways that are clear, honest, and maybe even inspiring. Our hope is that by being open about our efforts, we’ll encourage other organizers, attendees, exhibitors, and partners to make more sustainable choices too.

   b. We strive to make our sustainability guidelines easy to understand and follow for everyone on site. From clear signage and helpful crew to transparent reasoning behind our decisions, we aim to create a shared sense of purpose — making it easier for everyone to make better choices together.