The Future of Coffee: Agroforestry, Living Income, and Sustainability

The Future of Coffee: Agroforestry, Living Income, and Sustainability

Small-scale agroforestry farms are the backbone of coffee production, yet many are struggling to make ends meet. Take Uganda, for example: coffee farmers practising agroforestry earn, on average, a mere $88 per year from their crops - far below the living income threshold of $2,000 to $6,000. While increasing production may seem like a solution, it often leads to higher costs, cutting into already slim profits.

Instead of pushing small farms to scale up, we must support them where they are. These farms are critical to preserving coffee diversity, a key factor in the industry’s long-term health. However, comprehensive benchmarks to ensure farmers earn a living income are still lacking. Without these benchmarks, it's hard to guarantee fair prices for the farmers and their workers.

The Farm-Gate Price Dilemma

At Cloud Picker, we focus on specialty coffee, which is sold at a premium due to its unique flavours and origins. Unfortunately, this premium doesn’t always trickle down to the farmers. The farm-gate price - the amount farmers receive - is often muddied by the complexities of coffee processing. This lack of transparency makes it difficult to know whether the farmers are getting fair compensation. Despite these challenges, we remain committed to ensuring that coffee farmers are paid fairly, which is essential for the survival of coffee production as we know it.

Preserving Coffee’s Diversity

The global coffee industry is increasingly dominated by a few major players - Brazil and Vietnam alone produce 60% of the world’s coffee. While this might seem efficient, it threatens the very diversity of coffee origins. If Brazil continues to ramp up its production, we could see smaller coffee-producing countries edged out, further jeopardizing the sustainability of the global coffee market.

Why Diversity, Living Income, and Sustainability Go Hand in Hand

The issues of agroforestry, living income, and biodiversity are interconnected. Small-scale farmers often struggle with low yields, but by supporting them, we’re also protecting biodiversity and fighting climate change. These are not separate goals but essential components of a sustainable coffee industry.

Transparency, particularly around farm-gate prices, is a critical barrier to fairer compensation. Yet, we are committed to improving this through partnerships with our suppliers. Additionally, by sourcing coffee from a range of diverse origins and supporting small-scale agroforestry farms, we’re not just protecting biodiversity - we’re also playing our part in reducing emissions and even capturing carbon.

Cloud Picker’s Goals for 2024

As we look ahead, our 2024 goals reflect our commitment to sustainability and fairness:

• Increase coffee sourcing from agroforestry farms by 5%
• Expand our collaboration with Daterra Farm in Brazil, which uses carbon capture techniques to offset its environmental impact.

At Cloud Picker, we believe in a future where coffee farming is both sustainable and fair, ensuring that every cup you enjoy supports farmers and the planet. By pushing for fair prices and promoting living income, we’re working to make the coffee industry a more equitable place for everyone involved - from the farm to your cup.