Nespresso Announces Sustainability Advisory Board

Nespresso is solidifying its belief in sustainability, even though consumers don't always recycle its coffee pods.

On July 16, the Nestle-owned, largest maker of single-serve coffee announced The Nespresso Sustainability Advisory Board (NSAB), which will present new initiatives for farmer welfare and environmental stewardship. According to a press release, the program will improve coffee traceability to the farm level and will launch community development programs that address key socio-economic challenges in coffee growing communities. Board members include Fairtrade International and Rainforest Alliance. And in case these esteemed organizations weren't enough, Nespresso Brand Ambassador George Clooney can add this to his list of humanitarian accomplishments. The program will begin in Ethiopia and Kenya and will later try to reestablish a coffee industry in South Sudan. "The program will provide much-needed income and security for thousands of farmers and their families living in coffee communities in South Sudan," says Clooney.

CEO of Nestlé Nespresso Jean-Marc Duvoisin says in the release, "The insight and independent perspectives brought by these thought leaders...will ensure that we remain focused on initiatives that will have a positive overall impact on the environment and social aspects of our value chain." The company's 10-year AAA Program has worked with the Rainforest Alliance to make significant moves for the sustainable quality to produce benefits for farmers and their communities, but Duvoisin says there is more to be done. "We are driven by the need to continue to move forward."

The partners expect to double the amount of coffee sourced from the region to 10,000 tons by 2020.