Nestlé coffee award

NESTLE’S WORK to help cocoa and coffee farmers adapt to environmental challenges has been recognised as an example of best practice by the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

 

The company is helping farmers preserve crops vulnerable to the effects of climate change by training them to alter their production methods while improving the impacts of their activities.

 

Nestlé has been invited to share details of the agricultural assistance it is providing as part of the UNFCCC Private Sector Initiative, a long-term project that aims to encourage businesses to contribute in a sustainable and profitable way to an effective response to climate change.

 

Nestlé is the world’s leading buyer of coffee, purchasing about 780,000 tonnes a year, or 10% of the world’s supply. Coffee plants require very reliable rainfall patterns for growth. Farmers face challenges associated with climate change such as heat stress, pest pressure and water scarcity.

 

As part of its efforts to safeguard coffee plantations, Nestlé trained more than 16,000 coffee farmers worldwide in 2011 in techniques to adapt to changing weather patterns such as temperature increases and limited rainfall.

 

“Reducing our greenhouse gas emissions is a top priority for Nestlé, but increasingly we recognise we have a role to play in helping our suppliers adapt to the impacts of climate change too,” said Claus Conzelmann, global head of safety, health and environmental sustainability.

 

“Since 2001, we have more than halved the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from our factories per tonne of product. At the same time we are helping farmers become more resilient to environmental change.

 

“This not only enables them to continue to grow crops and reduces the risks to our long-term supply of raw materials, but also helps to ensure food security,” he added.

 

Nestlé has also published an update on its progress towards a number of sustainability targets.