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Sustainability
Farmers worldwide reap
the fruits of good SAI practices
July 2008
SINCE its establishment in 1996, the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform in Europe has successfully implemented programs for the benefit of farmers worldwide.
SAI was founded by Nestle S.A., the mother company of leading coffee brand NESCAFE, along with fellow food manufacturing companies Danone and Unilever in Europe to promote, among others, the improvement of farmers’ productivity through livelihood programs as well as land, soil, and water conservation.
Some of these programs were geared towards the coffee farming community in countries like Guatemala and El Salvador. In the Philippines, NESCAFE has likewise implemented SAI-like practices that help improve coffee farmers’ lives.
Improving social and environmental sustainability in Guatemala
In Guatemala, Nestle, together with Volcafe, initiated a program that helped improve the social and environmental sustainability of the country’s green coffee production.
Started in March 2004, the program ran for three years in the village of Ojercaibal. Among its projects included the construction of two classrooms, the introduction of sufficient drinking water, implementation of highly efficient stoves to reduce the consumption of firewood and health hazards, the planting of avocado trees for each family for reforestation, and the introduction of basic medicines for the village’s health clinic.
Promoting sustainable coffee production and processing in El Salvador
In El Salvador, meanwhile, the Neuman Kaffee Group (NKG) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) initiated a program that sought to promote the sustainable production and processing of Arabica green coffee.
Among its key aims were the strengthening of farming organizations, the identification of the best methods and indicators and development of a viable system for sustainable coffee production and processing, the commercialization of sustainable coffee and laying of foundations for long-term business, and the identification of other opportunities for generating income for farmers and their families.
SAI-inspired practices in the Philippines
In the Philippines, even before the establishment of the SAI Platform in Europe, NESCAFE has already initiated programs geared towards the betterment of coffee farmers’ lives.
The company, for example, had coffee buying stations across the country wherein farmers can directly sell their crops at guaranteed actual market prices.
Founded 20 years ago, they can be found in key coffee-producing areas around the country including Davao, Iloilo, Isabela, Zamboanga, Cotabato, Agusan del Sur, Palawan, Tuguegarao, Solano, Bacolod, Bohol, Calamba, Alabang and Cavite.
NESCAFE has also introduced the Coffee-Based Sustainable Farming System (CBSFS), which encourages farmers to plant other crops alongside coffee, hence helping increase their income. It has initiated the training and assessment of coffee farmers/suppliers for eventual certification as 4C coffee suppliers. 4C or Common Code for the Coffee Community is a global association aiming at social, environmental & economic sustainability in the mainstream coffee sector.
NESCAFE has also been at the forefront in the establishment of the SAI Platform-Philippines, whose first convention in October 2006 was attended by 15 of the country’s leading food industry executives. To date, SAI Philippines currently counts some of the country’s leading food manufacturers and agriculture organizations as its members. |
