Kraft Foods Inc., Nestle and other major coffee suppliers are significantly increasing purchases of sustainably produced coffee.
Rainforest Alliance, which certifies sustainably grown coffee and other food products, says its coffee business has grown 100% a year for the past three years.
Kraft Foods Inc. is the largest buyer of Rainforest certified coffee beans. Its purchase of sustainably grown beans has grown from 5.5 million pounds in 2004 to 26.5 million pounds in 2006. They constitute 30% of the beans in Kraft’s Yuban brand, the minimum percentage required for certification.
Nestle Nespresso S.A., a subsidiary of Nestle, plans to increase the amount of sustainable coffee that it buys to 50% by 2010, from the current 30 percent.
Minneapolis-based Caribou Coffee Co. Inc., also plains to increase Rainforest certified coffee to 50% by 2008, up from the expected 35% for 2007.
Coffee companies must pass specific environmental, social and economic criteria to gain Rainforest Alliance certification. In total, the group says the amount of certified coffee has grown from 7 million pounds in 2003 to 54.7 million pounds in 2006.
The NGO attributes the rise in sales to increased consumer and company awareness about environmental issues and farmers’ working conditions.
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