GLOBAL COFFEEPLATFORM

During the 3^rd Annual Members Meeting of the GCP Brazil Program, 55 representatives from 31 cooperatives, exporters, traders, roasters, associations, NGOs, service providers, and certification organizations shared their ideas regarding sustainable farming practices and how to ensure the economic viability of coffee farming in the country. Two main discussions held the spotlight throughout the day: the path towards Sustainable Coffee Regions and Good Agricultural Practices & Agrochemicals.

Towards Sustainable Coffee Regions

During the first part of the day, Annette Pensel, GCP Executive Director, moderated a panel to explore what the organization is currently developing to foster continuous improvements for coffee farmers and workers, and the sustainability of large volumes of coffee all around the world. For Ms. Pensel, “GCP Brazil’s work has become a fantastic example of how coffee sustainability improvements could be scaled in the future through collaboration around the Sustainable Coffee Regions approach”. The first conclusions of which will be shared later this year. The conversation was enriched by the participation of Saulo Faleiros (Vice President – COCAPEC), Sérgio Hazan (Partner – Comexim), Flávia Barbosa (Executive Director – Coffee Exporter Guaxupé), Rahul Banka (Vice President Café – Olam) and Aristides Tabosa (Origination and raw material Director – JDE), who contributed with their experiences and visions on such an approach.

GCP Collective Action Initiatives make coffee thrive

Eduardo Sampaio, GCP Consultant, moderated a dynamic discussion around Good Agricultural Practices & Agrochemicals.The panel presented solutions that could add value to the sector, discussing the use of agrochemicals in coffee production and implications on trade, including challenges and best practices related to the use of glyphosate (learn more about GCP Collective Action Initiatives). The panelists in this session were Valter Brunner (Corporate Affairs Director Latin America – Syngenta), Cristiane Lourenço (Agricultural Affairs and Sustainability Latin America – Bayer), César Candiano (Sustainability Technical Consultant – Agriculture Experimental/illy) and Lilian Vendrametto (Sustainability Manager – CECAFÉ).

The Brazilian GCP Members praised the debate and highlighted the importance of the presence and active involvement of key coffee leaders such as Ana Maria Soares Valentini, Agriculture Secretary of the state of Minas Gerais (Brazil’s largest coffee producing state) and Silas Brasileiro, Executive Director of the National Coffee Growers’ Council. As the Members’ Meeting is a unique opportunity for networking and knowledge exchange among GCP Members in Brazil, there were a variety of new opportunities for collective action such as using the Coffee Sustainability Curriculum (CSC) App for measurement or creating new Collective Action Initiatives to address sustainability gaps.

If you want to know more about the GCP Brazil Program and contribute to Brazil’s sustainability journey, please contact Pedro Ronca.