NESCAFÉ Plan project doubles farmers’ income

October 17, 2016 | 16:17

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The model of planting additional trees in between coffee trees, introduced by Nestle Vietnam to domestic coffee farmers, has helped increase their income, while protecting the environment at the same time.

The model, which is part of the NESCAFÉ Plan project, encourages farmers to plant additional trees, such as pepper, durian, and avocado, between coffee trees. It has helped many farmers optimise soil usage and increase biodiversity.

Experts from Nestle instructed farmers on the appropriate density of additional trees in order to optimise soil usage. Afterwards, they compared the results of the new model with those of the current practice. Nestle Vietnam has held conferences at the model garden to show farmers the model and its benefits.

The model is an effective method for farmers to have a stable income even if their coffee trees are aging and have low yield, by securing alternatives.

After four years, 16,000 farmers have adopted the model, 70 per cent of the total number of farmers instructed. The farmers increased their income by 100 per cent, running laps around the 25 per cent if they only plant pepper between their coffee trees. Nestle Vietnam aims to expand the model to the whole of the Central Highlands.

Started in Vietnam in 2011, the NESCAFÉ Plan project aims to develop sustainable agriculture and increase the quality and yield of Vietnamese coffee trees to improve the lives of 500,000 coffee farmers. As of now, the project has distributed more than 14 million high-yield, disease-resistant coffee seedlings to farmers to replant, and held almost 3,000 courses on sustainable coffee farming, attracting the participation of 33,000 farmers, and helped 21,000 farmers receive the international coffee certificate 4C.