The Sustainable Trade Initiative aims to work with coffee farmers across Vietnam, India, Colombia and Uganda
Sustainable agriculture and trade platform, IDH, has launched a four-year initiative targeting approximately 300,000 coffee farmers across Vietnam, India, Colombia and Uganda by 2030.
The Resilient Coffee Program aims to support the production of around 500,000 tonnes of regenerative coffee annually, creating what IDH describes as a pre-competitive investment platform for companies, governments and industry partners to strengthen coffee value chains.
Vietnam is the first country component to launch, with German retailer ALDI SÜD Group joining as the programme’s first front-runner investor. IDH is inviting additional roasters, traders, governments and buyers across Europe and North America to participate.
In Vietnam, the programme aims to reach around 75,000 farmers, equivalent to approximately 10% of the country’s coffee-growing households and 14% of its coffee area. IDH is targeting regenerative farming practices across up to 70% of participating farms, a reduction of approximately 240,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and a 15% increase in farmer incomes.
The programme will use shared measurement, reporting and verification systems, alongside traceability and co-claiming frameworks, allowing participating companies to track and report progress across the supply chain.
“Climate pressure, shifting market expectations and the need to support farmers all call for a different approach, one built on collaboration and shared investment,” said Daan Wensing, CEO of IDH.
“That is what the Resilient Coffee Program offers: an open, pre-competitive platform where roasters, traders and governments can co-invest in resilient coffee value chains, together,” he added.
ALDI SÜD said its investment would support regenerative agriculture and emissions reduction in Vietnam’s Robusta coffee sector. The company also linked the programme to the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform’s Regenerating Together Framework, the EU Deforestation Regulation and emerging European corporate due diligence requirements.
“The long-term resilience of the coffee sector depends on supporting the farmers and communities at its foundation,” said Rachel Vujovic, sustainability director at ALDI SÜD Group.
“By investing together, we can help ensure that our customers can continue to enjoy their morning cup of coffee for years to come.”
The programme comes as climate change, rising input costs and new traceability requirements increase pressure on coffee producers and buyers. IDH said climate shocks are already reducing coffee yields by an estimated 10% to 30%, while rising temperatures could reduce the area suitable for coffee cultivation by 20% to 50% by 2050.
Vietnam’s 2024-25 drought reduced national coffee output by approximately 20%, according to IDH, while subsequent flooding in the Central Highlands left some farms requiring up to two crop cycles to recover.
JDE Peet’s participated in the launch roundtable and said building resilience was a shared responsibility across the coffee sector.
“Building resilience of the coffee as a sector is a shared responsibility. We were glad to take part in this round table and to see a program that invites the whole sector to invest together. We support the direction the Resilient Coffee Program is setting and look forward to exploring how we can contribute,” commented Sy Do Ngoc, Sustainability Manager APAC at JDE Peet’s
IDH said the programme remains open to additional commercial and public-sector partners across all four origins.
