Sustainability in Colombia
In Colombia, we work with a range of partners to make our coffee supply chains more sustainable
Heritage Project
Initiated in 2019, this three-year project in the municipality of Líbano, in Tolima, is funded by one of our coffee customers, Julius Meinl.
Certified by the UTZ standard, which promotes better social, economic and environmental practices, the project aims to promote best practices in coffee drying to help local coffee growers boost their income by increasing the sale of dry coffee relative to wet coffee.
58 coffee growers participated in the project in its first year, amd were able to sell 80% of their production as dry pergamino coffee (up from a previous 30% of production sold as dry coffee).
Benefits also include the installation of 25 solar dryers, training activities in good agricultural practices and support for a local school with educational material and infrastructure improvements.
Coffee Education for Future Generations
Run jointly by the Louis Dreyfus Foundation and LDC’s Coffee Platform in Brazil and Colombia, this project aims to educate younger generations in sustainable coffee production methods.
In Colombia, the project focused on El Tejar School, in the municipality of Timaná, where we work with 102 high school students aged 11 to 15.
Thirty local coffee growers also participate in the project, the majority of whom are parents to these students, to encourage knowledge transmission from one generation to the next.
Activities include theoretical and practical training on coffee production techniques, farm visits with students, visits to LDC assets, cupping sessions and educational interaction with third parties on environmental issues.
Toward Sustainable Coffee Farming for Present and Future Generations
Agreed in 2020 with Jacobs Douwe Egberts and followed by USAID, the project will be developed in Cauca, Huila, Tolima and Risaralda with the participation of 1600 coffee growers.
Its objective is to improve incomes through reduced production costs and increased product quality, by training coffee growers in fertilization, harvest and post-harvest techniques such as cupping and profiling, and by installing coffee wastewater treatment systems.
The project will deliver post-harvest kits to participating coffee growers, and training will include educational tours, field days and follow-up visits to farms.
Certification in Sustainability Standards
LDC promotes the pursuit of several coffee sustainability certification standards in order to meet customer demand for certified coffee.
In Colombia we work with three standards: Café Practices, UTZ and the Rainforest Alliance.
Through training and with the support LDC agronomists, we have certified some 4,250 coffee growers under these standards.
