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African Wildlife Foundation and Starbucks establish Coffee-Quality Laboratory in Kenya
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Starbucks and AWF open a Coffee-Quality Laboratory in Kenya
to assist coffee farmers. (Photo/Starbucks Coffee Company)
The African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) and Starbucks Coffee Company announced today the inauguration of the Coffee-Quality Laboratory in Kenya. The new Lab is located on the campus of Kimathi University College of Technology near Nyeri in the Central Highlands of the east African nation.
What coffee drinkers may not realize is that a majority of coffee farmers never drink or even taste the coffee that they grow. Coffee is typically grown in the developing countries so farmers have very little access to coffee cupping labs or the latest coffee planting and harvesting techniques. Starbucks and AWF understand how this situation challenges the production of high-quality coffee. The Coffee-Quality Lab provides local Kenyan coffee farmers the opportunity to sample and taste their own coffee, which is crucial for farmers to stay competitive in the global coffee market.
In the joint release, Chris von Zastrow, director of agronomy at Starbucks Farmer Support Center based in Rwanda, stated,
Until now most local farmers lacked access to tasting and roasting facilities, an important tool in refining growing practices. By evaluating the coffee aroma and flavor profile of their beans, farmers can glean information about their planting and harvesting techniques and continually introduce quality improvements.”
Starbucks and AWF first joined forces in 2005 when they launched the Kenya Heartland Coffee Project to increase the supply of high-quality coffee while at the same time protect critically endangered ecosystems. AWF's agricultural experts work on the ground directly with coffee farmers to implement Starbucks C.A.F.E Practices. C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices is Starbucks ethical coffee sourcing guidelines and is a vital part of Starbucks Shared Planet.
But the good work doesn't stop there. In addition to opening the Coffee-Quality Lab, the AWF and Starbucks partnership has upgraded local coffee mills to improve efficiency and reduce water usage, managed the planting of more than 10,000 trees, and created a state-of-the-art dam to conserve water resources and benefit the local community.
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