Nescafé, a brand owned by Nestlé, surpasses its sustainable coffee farming target
Nestlé's Nescafé Plan 2030 is making significant strides in the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices, resulting in higher productivity and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. According to the company's Progress Report, Nescafé surpassed its 2025 goal of sourcing 20% of its coffee from farmers implementing regenerative agriculture practices, with nearly one-third of its coffee beans sourced sustainably by mid-2024 [2][3][4][5].
The Nescafé Plan 2030 focuses on several key areas. Firstly, it aims to expand regenerative agriculture, promoting practices that restore soil health, increase biodiversity, and improve ecosystem resilience, enabling sustainable coffee production. Secondly, it targets a reduction in environmental impact by focusing on lower GHG emissions across the coffee supply chain through sustainable farming and improved productivity. Lastly, it seeks to improve farmer livelihoods by helping farmers increase yields while adopting eco-friendly practices [2][5].
Axel Touzet, Head of Nestlé's Coffee Brands Strategic Business Unit, emphasized the importance of regenerative agriculture in building resilience in Nescafé's coffee supply chain. These practices are not only aimed at improving productivity and lowering farmers' costs but also at addressing the environmental impact of farming, improving ecosystems, building soil health, reducing emissions, enhancing watershed management, increasing biodiversity, and improving farmers' livelihoods [6].
In order to accelerate these efforts, Nestlé plans to continue investing in regenerative agriculture and farmer support programs. This includes scaling up infrastructure and digitization initiatives, particularly in key markets like India, to support penetration and premiumization of their coffee portfolio, which will likely integrate with sustainability goals [1].
The Nescafé Plan currently covers more than 400,000 hectares of coffee farmlands, and over 200,000 coffee farmers in 16 countries were trained in regenerative agriculture in 2024 [2]. As part of its initiatives, Nescafé supports farmers in transitioning to practices such as optimized fertilization, soil cover, mulching, and composting [7].
Nestlé has committed to investing over $1 billion in the Nescafé Plan 2030 by 2030. With its current progress, the company is well on its way to meeting its 2030 sustainability targets and ensuring long-term supply chain resilience [2][5]. The goal is to reach 50% of coffee from farms with regenerative agricultural practices by 2030 [3]. The current progress shows that Nescafé is ahead on its regenerative agriculture targets for 2025 and is committed to scaling these practices with the ultimate objective of climate-positive coffee farming by 2030 [2][5].
References:
[1] Nestlé. (2022). Nestlé India's coffee business to focus on premiumization. Retrieved from https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/nestle-india-s-coffee-business-to-focus-on-premiumization-122090400677_1.html
[2] Nestlé. (2024). Nescafé Progress Report 2024. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/nescafe-progress-report-2024
[3] Nestlé. (2022). Nescafé launches Nescafé Plan 2030. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/nescafe-launches-nescafe-plan-2030
[4] Nestlé. (2024). Nescafé reaches 20% of coffee from farmers implementing regenerative agriculture practices a year early. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/nescafe-reaches-20-of-coffee-from-farmers-implementing-regenerative-agriculture-practices-a-year-early
[5] Nestlé. (2024). Nescafé's regenerative agricultural practices result in significant GHG emissions reduction. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/nescafe-s-regenerative-agricultural-practices-result-in-significant-ghg-emissions-reduction
[6] Nestlé. (2024). Axel Touzet on the importance of regenerative agriculture in building resilience in Nescafé's coffee supply chain. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/axel-touzet-on-the-importance-of-regenerative-agriculture-in-building-resilience-in-nescafe-s-coffee-supply-chain
[7] Nestlé. (2024). Nescafé supports farmers in transitioning to regenerative agriculture practices. Retrieved from https://www.nestle.com/media/news/nescafe-supports-farmers-in-transitioning-to-regenerative-agriculture-practices
- Nestlé's focus on regenerative agriculture in the Nescafé Plan 2030 extends to environmental science, as these practices aim to improve soil health, increase biodiversity, and lower greenhouse gas emissions.
- In order to achieve its sustainability targets, Nestlé is investing significantly in regenerative agriculture, not only for business reasons such as premiumizing its coffee portfolio, but also for environmental purposes, ultimately working towards climate-positive coffee farms.
- Nestlé's commitment to environmental-science investments, like regenerative agriculture, is a strategic move in finance and business, as it not only ensures long-term supply chain resilience but also aligns with the global trend of investing in sustainability and climate-change solutions.
