Starbucks launched TODOS SEMBRAMOS CAFÉ last summer to direct 100% of the profits from whole-bean Shade Grown Mexico Coffee sold in Starbucks stores in Mexico from June through December 2014 to purchase rust resistant coffee plants for Chiapas coffee growers who need assistance renewing their plots.
The program, run in collaboration with Agroindustrias Unidas de México (AMSA), Anacafé (National Association of Coffee) and the Alsea Foundation, is part of Starbucks ongoing, comprehensive commitment to working with others to support coffee farmers around the world.
For Starbucks, this marks an important milestone in a long journey with coffee farmers in Chiapas. While the company has been sourcing coffee from the region for its U.S. and international stores since 2002, it has also been offering Shade Grown Mexico Coffee, grown under the shade of trees in the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas, as its daily “coffee of the day” in all stores in Mexico since 2008.
Starbucks serves more than 10 million cups of coffee from Chiapas annually in the country.
Starbucks Mexico donated three types of coffee plants to farmers in Chiapas. The varietals are known for generating better yields, higher cup quality, and improved rust resistance – Costa Rica 95, Guacamaya (Macaw) and Marseillas. Farmers have found that by increasing the density of plants per hectare, the coffee trees are revitalized and that increases the crop’s disease resistance, quality and yield.
While the first phase of TODOS SEMBRAMOS CAFÉ has concluded, Starbucks Mexico remains committed to extending the program. In collaboration with agronomists, the company plans to develop a tailored program with each coffee producer and perform periodic visits to assist with plant nutrition, soil analyses, PH reviews and identify possible presence of pests or diseases.
