What’s the biggest challenge for you as a coffee farmer?
For Lucía Álvarez, it was the lack of understanding from her family and many male community members as to why she, a woman, wanted to pursue and start her own coffee farm.
Álvarez is one of 100 women coffee farmers who are currently receiving training through the Women’s Center for Entrepreneurship in Huila, Colombia. Peet’s Coffee helped establish the Center in collaboration with Sustainable Harvest, an Oregon-based B Corp coffee trading company, and several other partners, to train women farmers, all members of the coffee cooperative Coocentral, to build small businesses that complement coffee farming. The Center’s curriculum will support that objective by focusing on the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, business model development, and business plan creation.
Álvarez and other farmers face many challenges—low coffee market prices, the movement of young people from rural to urban areas, and erratic weather associated with climate change. These issues conspire to make it difficult to earn the stable, desired income farmers want from coffee. The Center's goal is to educate women farmers on how to operate successful small businesses in addition to growing coffee so they diversify their sources of income and stand a better chance at managing these challenges.
Partnering for success
In an effort to help broaden the conversation, Peet’s Coffee hosted a Social Responsibility Summit which included participation from various partners, including the Culinary Institute of America, the Golden State Warriors, Kaiser Permanente, LifeWorks, UC Berkeley and UC Davis.
During the summit, attendees had the opportunity to meet and hear first-hand experiences from a few of the women farmers, as well as participate in a cross-collaborative discussion focused on women’s empowerment, social responsibility and sustainability. “UC Berkeley values diversity of thought,” said Amy Gardner, executive director of University Business Partnership & Services. “Being able to engage with our campus partners on shared initiatives allows each of us to contribute a different set of expertise and unique perspectives, which will almost surely lead to better results for all.”
Gardner was also pleased to see a variety of campus units attend the discussion, including representation from the ASUC Student Union, Cal Dining, Haas Center for Responsible Business, Office of Sustainability, Student Environment Resource Center and the University Partnership Program. “Through these collaborative discussions we are bound to have solutions that are more inclusive, more thoughtful and more effective,” noted Gardner.
As the Women’s Center for Entrepreneurship grows, Peet’s Coffee will continue seeking out ways to support this important effort. Each year, Peet’s celebrates its anniversary with a beloved tradition—crafting great coffee that gives back to a community at origin. This year’s 2019 Anniversary Blend features coffee grown and purchased by some of the remarkable women farmers participating in the Center. Further, proceeds from the 2019 Anniversary blend will be used to continue the educational support provided by the Center.
UC Berkeley students looking to support coffee farmers can select the Las Hermanas Fair Trade Certified coffee served at various campus Cal Dining – Peet’s Coffee locations. Las Hermanas is a 200 strong sisterhood of coffee farmers in Nicaragua whose dedication of quality and community has moved them from subsistence to sustainability. A portion of every Peet's Coffee purchase made at Cal Dining - Peet's locations or through Cal Dining helps support UC Berkeley student programs and campus-wide initatives.