March 2023
At JDE Peet’s we are working towards 100% responsibly sourced coffee across our portfolio of brands by 2025. A number of our brands have already achieved this, one being Peet’s Coffee. For decades Peet’s has worked alongside coffee partners and non-profits globally to advocate for social responsibility throughout the coffee production supply chain. In 2021 Peet’s proudly achieved 100% responsibly sourced coffee.
Responsible Sourcing
Responsible and inclusive sourcing is not only about buying from the farmers who already comply with sustainable standards but supporting the most vulnerable farmers who need help to build their resilience in a durable way. Peet’s partnered with Enveritas to lead the way into inclusive responsible sourcing through their “Sourcing with Impact” programme.
Enveritas is an independent, third-party, global non-profit organisation, recognised by the global coffee Platform, that tracks social, economic, and agricultural impact across multiple crops and industries. The process relies upon comprehensive farm audits conducted by regional specialists trained in coffee production to help identify a variety of risks including deforestation, child labour and other damaging social and environmental conditions.
Partnering with Enveritas enabled Peet’s to get directly involved, at the farm level of our coffee supply chain, in more than 20 countries around the globe, including farms beyond the reach of certification programs.
Doug Welsh, Vice President and Roastmaster, Peet’s Coffee.
“Sourcing with Impact” starts with the assessment of the social, environmental, and economic challenges that concern all of us as global citizens. Peet’s found that most of these complex challenges were not yet well-measured. Enveritas evaluates conditions ranging from water conservation to workplace safety and beyond. Once we have the sustainability audit data, we engage with our suppliers – excluding farms is not the aim, addressing identified issues is. With Enveritas data, we seek to understand the issues better and accept responsibility for addressing them with improvement projects tailored to the needs of communities.
Peet’s has made a long-term commitment to support our dedicated, hard-working business partners in every origin we source coffee, especially as they face mounting challenges related to climate change and other concerns. We invest in training opportunities, coffee plant science, and community services at the point of origin, for example, funding a day care centre at a farm in Costa Rica.
This inclusive approach allows us to reach smallholder farmers who might not have been able to access traditional certification and provide them with sustainable assets that will contribute to the lasting improvement of their livelihood.
This verification process has been adopted throughout JDE Peet’s, in addition to certification, to enable us to source responsively and inclusively. JDE Peet’s – not our farming partners – pay the entire cost of Enveritas verification. The Enveritas system is available to any company looking to update its approach. Our hope is that our whole industry will work together to help independent farmers tackle environmental, social, and economic challenges in growing regions.