UK – Olam Food Ingredients (OFI) coffee business, a leading supplier of green coffee, has announced a comprehensive plan to reduce supply chain emissions by 30 percent by 2030.
The plan also aims to empower 20,000 farmers to achieve a living income, expand human rights programs, and implement regenerative farming practices across half a million hectares in key coffee-growing regions.
These ambitious targets are part of OFI’s sustainability initiative known as Coffee LENS (Livelihoods, Empowerment, and Nature at Scale) 2.0.
Vivek Verma, Chief Executive of Coffee at OFI, emphasized the ambitious nature of the goals, stating, “Our targets are ambitious, but they’re backed by a sustainability journey spanning 20 years and represent the next chapter in our long-term ambition to build more resilient and regenerative coffee supply chains.”
The sustainability goals for OFI’s coffee business up to 2030 include four key focus areas: OFI plans to expand segmentation models to provide customized support to 300,000 farmer households, with the aim of 20,000 achieving a living income.
The company will also implement Child Labor Monitoring & Remediation Systems (CLMRS) in all high-risk supply chains, benefiting 50,000 children through educational support to protect human rights.
Additionally, OFI aims to scale up climate-smart actions and resource efficiency, targeting a 30 percent reduction in on-farm greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and a 50 percent reduction in processing plant emissions.
The company will also work towards regenerative production systems, focusing on building Natural Capital while incorporating geospatial tools into deforestation monitoring systems.
These targets align with the growing demand for sustainability in the food industry, especially as companies face increased scrutiny on human rights and environmental due diligence.
To achieve these goals, OFI’s coffee teams, situated in 18 origins across the coffee belt, will leverage innovation and digital capabilities.
The company aims to address issues such as child labor risks and deforestation, assisting customers in meeting their responsible sourcing commitments.
OFI has collaborated with Google geospatial partner NGIS to develop a Carbon Sequestration Monitoring (CSM) tool.
This tool will measure and account for gains and losses in carbon stocks on OFI’s coffee supplier farms and sourcing landscapes, enhancing the company’s monitoring framework.
Vivek Verma emphasized the importance of this bolder approach, stating, “Whether we’re supplying specialty coffees, cascara applications, or plant-based latte mixes, we can offer our roaster and manufacturer customers beverage ingredients that come with greater transparency and sustainability impact across their supply chains.”
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