MILAN — The ICO has welcomed the outcomes of the G7 Summit held last week at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Fasano, Apulia, Italy. The gathering addressed critical issues such as climate change, economic recovery and international relations, the future of the coffee sector was also discussed. On the occasion of the 50th summit of the world’s leading economies, where critical issues such as climate change, economic recovery and international relations were addressed, the future of the coffee sector was also on the agenda.
Prior to the event, in April 2024, the G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy, and Environment, together with the Italian Presidency of the G7, acknowledged the challenges faced by the coffee sector and advocated for a public-private partnership initiative designed to foster sustainable, resilient, circular, and regenerative coffee value chains.
Central to the latest summit was the leaders’ commitment to policies and investments aimed at addressing climate-related food supply disruptions.
Of notable significance, they pledged to support multi-stakeholder programmes, including an innovative private-public initiative on coffee, as recommended earlier, says the ICO in a press release.
This proposal aims to advance policy, investment, research, innovation, partnerships and blended finance to boost resilience, sustainability, value addition, and the circularity of the coffee global value chain (C-GVC). It will also seek to support smallholders and family farmers in coffee-producing countries and examine the feasibility of establishing a dedicated global fund.
Vanúsia Nogueira, Executive Director of the ICO, commented on this milestone, stating: “The ICO is committed to achieving a diversified global coffee sector and to economic and social development through sound value distribution in the C-GVC and by enhancing income opportunities in producing and consuming countries.
We are proud that the ‘coffee diplomacy’ efforts of the ICO and our Coffee Private-Public Task Force have resulted in coffee being recognized as a key strategic sector by the G7 leaders. This is proof that a strong ICO amplifies the voices of farmers and empowers coffee stakeholders, bringing hope to millions worldwide.”
“Building on the endorsements made at the summit, the ICO will continue its efforts and collaborate with the Italian presidency of the G7 and other partners to develop a robust and concrete proposal to mobilize funding and resources aimed at fostering the coffee sector’s journey towards sustainability, inclusion and climate change mitigation, as well as achieving a living and prosperous income for producers” says the press release.
The proposal is expected to be presented at the upcoming G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Development in October, informed by the ICO and partners’ recent report on global coffee funding mechanisms: “Sustainability & Resilience of the Global Value Chain: Towards a Coffee Investment Vehicle.”
