FNC and USAID launch Coffee for Peace strategy in Colombia

Both will work with coffee-growing families of six departments and 34 municipalities. To date, 398 tons of coffee worth US $ 1.4 million have been exported.

Bogotá, October 17, 2019 (FNC Press Office) – The Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) launched Coffee for Peace in Colombia, a brand strategy to promote coffee from regions affected by violence and illicit economies.

The launch took place within the framework of Cafés de Colombia Expo, the most important specialty coffee expo in Latin America and the Caribbean, to be held in Corferias from October 17 to 20.

The Coffee for Peace strategy focuses on coffee-growing families of six departments or regions (Antioquia, Caquetá, Cauca, Meta, southern Bolívar and Valle del Cauca) and 34 municipalities, where the structuring of sustainable businesses has been promoted by strengthening all the chain links.

“Any initiative that helps us improve income of Colombian coffee growers, which includes providing them with direct access to buyers willing to recognize their work, will always be welcomed and have the strong support of the FNC,” the FNC CEO, Roberto Vélez, said at the launch.

Increased productivity, improved harvest and post-harvest, and promotion of associative and inter-institutional work have facilitated bringing producers and base organizations into contact with national and international markets.

In the medium and long term, the strategy is expected to reach all coffee regions of the country through the Federation, widening the connection between producers, buyers and roasters.

A comprehensive strategy

Coffee for Peace is a comprehensive and sustainable strategy that includes activities such as:

• Promotion and marketing: including a portal that allows producers, marketers and roasters to be connected; promotion of coffee through social media (YouTube, Instagram and FB); support to participation of producers and organizations in expos and events at national (regional expos, auctions, quality competitions, etc.) and international level (SCA, SCJ, coffee summits, etc.), and tours of international buyers to farms and places of origin of coffee.

• Commercial development: with the coordinated work of the FNC, USAID and other strategic partners, better production and implementation of basic cultivation practices is supported, the microprocessor program is developed to overcome critical points of the post-harvest process that affect coffee quality; and on-farm and community production infrastructure is improved to identify supply of traceable coffee and microlots with export potential.

• E-commerce: alliances with e-commerce platforms are sought for reaching over 3,000 roasters and importers, having the exportable supply updated and continuing the coordinated work with the FNC and other strategic partners.

An initiative that has paid off

Coffee for Peace in Colombia was launched globally in last June during the 2019 World Coffee Berlin expo, where coffee was promoted at the Café de Colombia booth; in addition, the initiative facilitated the signing of a business agreement between Germany’s Kafkao Republik company and the Cafemásu organization, from the Mesetas municipality (Meta), for the purchase of 100 tons of coffee annually over five years initially.

With this strategy, two missions of buyers have been taken to Valle del Cauca and Cauca, and three auctions in regional coffee competitions in Cauca have been supported, making Trabocca (USA) company a partnering importer, with which a commercial alliance has been struck for distributing coffee to small roasters in the USA, the Netherlands and South Korea.

To date, through Coffee for Peace in Colombia, 398 tons of coffee worth USD 1.4 million have been exported, and four memoranda of understanding have been signed with international buyers.

For the remainder of 2019, four missions of buyers are scheduled for the departments of Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Antioquia, Meta and Bolívar, including companies such as RGC, Atlas Coffee, Schuil Coffee, Coffee Source and Crop to Cup.

Learn more about the initiative at coffeeforpeace.org