Britain recently signed a key global coffee sector agreement aimed at tackling some of the industry's most pressing issues, including making coffee growing and coffee consumption more sustainable.
Food and farming minister Mark Spencer signed the 'International Coffee Agreement (ICA) 2022', the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Department said in a joint statement with the International Coffee Organisation (ICO) and the British Coffee Association (BCA).
Agreement
The agreement for the first time gives private sector players like roasters and farmers a more prominent role, alongside national governments, in driving the global coffee sector's sustainability initiatives.
"This international treaty champions the industry globally, and I hope the UK can help continue its drive for new standards of sustainability for our coffee," said Spencer.
First ICA
The first ICA was signed between producing and consuming countries in 1962, with the aim of regulating global coffee prices via the use of production quotas.
It later collapsed, prompting a move to freely traded markets that have kept prices mostly low, farmers facing poverty and sustainability efforts impaired.
Brazil Farmers
On the 14 April, Reuters reported that farmers in Brazil are benefiting from a drop in fertiliser import prices this year after sanctions against major producers Russia and Belarus in 2022 sparked fears of a global supply shortage.
According to analysts, Brazilian growers of staples like coffee and soybeans saw an increase in their purchasing power for inputs like urea and the NPK fertiliser mixture, containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in different proportions.
Read More: Brazil Soy, Coffee Farmers Bolstered By Fertiliser Price Falls
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