ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – Under the frame of the 4th World Coffee Conference in Ethiopia, Roberto Vélez (in the picture), CEO of the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC), advocated for increasing and stabilizing the income of coffee growers.
His proposal envisions the sustainability of coffee growers and of the global industry as a whole.
“How can we expect to have a future generation of coffee growers if the current one can hardly make a living? It’s impossible. And without coffee growers and coffee, there will be no global industry.
The sustainability table has three legs. All of them have to be of equal length if we want the table to be stable.”
In this regard, Mr. Vélez noted that Colombia is now implementing mechanisms that aim to raise productivity and profitability. This, in turn, will contribute to stabilizing the income of coffee growers.
When referring to the global industry, Mr. Vélez stressed: “As producers, we have nothing against a profitable global industry characterized by positive margins and utilities. However, the entire chain has to be profitable, starting with the coffee growers. We want coffee to be an attractive business for everyone.”
As in the Sintercafé forum in Costa Rica, the CEO’s proposal has been well received. During the rest of the week Mr. Vélez will meet with five African coffee grower organizations to analyze mechanisms that could potentially lead to the economic sustainability of coffee growers.
Key buyers, such as the Japanese roaster company Key Coffee, have recognized that low international coffee prices are deleterious for the industry as a whole because they impact quality and undermine long-term sustainability.
