TRACEABILITY GUIDE FOR TRADERS, ROASTERS & BUYERS
The Philippine Coffee Alliance prepared this simple Traceability Guide to initiate integrity in the Philippine coffee industry. Roasters and traders can keep in mind and heart to give respect and support for the coffee farmers as frontliners in the farm.
Information on how much coffee a farmer or community is producing and traded in the market must be taken into account. Imported (a.k.a. Landed) Green Coffee Beans enter the Philippines tax-free, thus are cheaper than farmgate GCB prices, putting local beans at a disadvantage. Where there is traceability, there is accountability and support for local industry.
Vital information from producer to consumer helps build and strengthen relationships between stakeholders, thus creating stability and transparency in the supply chain and resulting in better prices for producers while delivering better quality coffee for consumers
Thus, one should ask the following questions when buying coffee:
1. Who and where do you buy your GCBs or Roasted coffees from?
2. How many kilos of GCB or roasted coffees do you buy from the person / community?
On the producer's end, how many kilos of GCB can the person / community produce?
What is the price range of the GCB sold by the person / community?
3. Can your supplier name the person / community where you GCB or roasted coffees come from?
If supplier is a cooperative / organization / farmer cluster, can they provide names of the farmers who produced the GCB ?
Whenever you drink Philippine Coffee, ask yourself:
Who is the farmer that nurtured these beans?
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