Cooxupé launches its own sustainability protocol for the global coffee community
The Regional Cooperative of Coffee Growers in Guaxupé (MG) presented to the market and coffee consumers its own sustainability protocol called "Generations". The launch was made by the president of Cooxupé, Carlos Augusto Rodrigues de Melo, on the evening of May 25, during the global forum Coffee Dinner & Summit, which took place in São Paulo (SP).
In addition to launching the Generations Protocol, Cooxupé was honored by the event organized by the Coffee Exporters Council of Brazil (Cecafé), in recognition of the leadership in coffee exports for the performance of 2022, when the cooperative exported 5.6 million bags of green Arabica coffee to 50 countries.
Generations Protocol: Coffee for the most demanding consumers
According to Cooxupé, the adoption of sustainable practices and the ESG agenda are already part of the reality of the cooperative to ensure a better future for the more than 18,000 members and to have the quality and provenance of the coffee produced increasingly recognized in the face of market and consumer demands.
The work resulted in the implementation of the Generations Protocol, which defines guidelines and levels so that the cooperative and its members are integrated into the new reality: that the longevity and quality of the grain are deeply linked to an economically sustainable production system, in harmony with the environment and with the producers, their families and their employees.
Through the protocol, Cooxupé and its members have been adopting the best practices to ensure resilience, in addition to improving working conditions on the properties and thus producing a sustainable coffee from a social, ethical and environmental point of view. "Most of our members represent family farming, so our biggest challenge is for everyone to integrate this inclusive program to benefit from greater competitiveness in the market and produce a coffee that serves the consumer of the future," explains the president, Carlos Augusto.
The protocol includes the different realities and variations of each producer, such as production size, resources, among other factors. To ensure transparency in the processes, Generations brings four different levels of sustainability. "All of these levels bring together a set of requirements. In this way, the cooperative members are encouraged to comply with the minimum sustainability commitments (Level 1), increasing the commitments to thus progress to the other levels, "explains the president.
The Generations Protocol was developed in partnership with SCS Global Service, a body with 40 years of experience in environmental, sustainability and food quality certification. "The producers are aware and accepting very well the model of our protocol. Also because it is an inclusive, transparent and very representative program, because it has cooperativism in its essence. However, to close the other pillars of sustainability, it will be necessary to involve all the links in the chain. And in this sense, we are very optimistic", guarantees the commercial superintendent of Cooxupé, Luiz Fernando dos Reis.
Another objective of Cooxupé in adopting and launching the sustainability protocol is the search for fair prices and adding value to its products. "There is no social responsibility and no environmental commitment if there is no economic development," says the superintendent.
For him, sustainability and the ESG agenda are the challenges of the moment and that the cooperative must prove to the market the quality of the coffee marketed. "The practice of cooperativism faithfully developed at Cooxupé allows us to provide the cooperative with the appropriate support to adapt to the various needs of the market. Whatever the requirement, we will be resilient and prepared for the future", concludes Luiz Fernando.