Starbucks announced that the company will be expanding its coffee farm network from one coffee farm — Hacienda Alsacia in Costa Rica — to another farm in Costa Rica and a third farm in Guatemala, with more to come in Africa and Asia. The long-term goal is to fight climate change through sustainable farming practices, as well as increase productivity on farms to help improve profitability for these small farmers, the company said.
“Starbucks works with more than 450,000 farms that grow the highest quality Arabica coffee in the world,” Michelle Burns, Starbucks executive vice president of global coffee and sustainability, said in a statement. “Our promise to those farmers and their communities is that we will always work to ensure a sustainable future of coffee for all. Our solution is to develop on-farm interventions, share seeds, research and practices across the industry to help farmers mitigate the impacts of climate change.”
Starbucks, which currently buys 3% of the world’s coffee, is focused on improving the coffee plant’s resilience in the face of global rising temperatures, drought, coffee leaf rust disease and other related climate challenges that impact the availability and taste of coffee.
At these new farms, Starbucks will be experimenting with new agricultural innovations and methods. For example, the new farm in Costa Rica, which will be located next to the first farm, will explore the use of mechanization and drones to help support manual labor availability challenges. The farm in Guatemala will use a smallholder farming design to improve farmer resilience. The eventual goal will be to help prepare the world’s “Coffee Belt” for climate changes that could disrupt agriculture.
“Through these innovation farms, we will develop solutions that will not only improve coffee productivity and quality but also empower farmers with the tools and knowledge needed to thrive in a changing world and challenging climate,” Roberto Vega, Starbucks vice president of global coffee agronomy, research and development, and sustainability, said in a statement. “This work is done on behalf of coffee farmers everywhere with findings that can be applied across other industries and crops that are also impacted by climate change.”
Starbucks has been ramping up its climate protection investments recently, with the exploration of a new reusable cup program, and investment in electric vehicle charging and solar energy.
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