Internaonal Coffee Partners: 25 Years of Commitment for Resilient Coffee Farming Families and Communies

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Hamburg, March 31, 2026: Internaonal Coffee Partners (ICP) – comprising Delta Cafés of Portugal, Franck of Croaa, Joh. Johannson Kaffe of Norway, Lavazza of Italy, Lö)ergs of Sweden, Neumann Kaffee Gruppe of Germany, and Tchibo of Germany – celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. In 2001, during the devastang coffee crisis, a group of dedicated European coffee companies decided to cooperate pre-compevely to support resilient coffee farming and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farming families. In the past 25 years, the six ICP shareholders have invested 25 million Euros in ICP acvies mobilizing addional resources from donor organizaons and other partners for fostering effecve soluons that lead to meaningful change.

25 Years of Meaningful Change

In 2026, ICP is marking 25 years of connuous support for smallholder farming families and communies. Back in 2001, ICP has embarked on a connuous learning journey with its project work based on the realies of smallholder farmers with all their complexies and needs The idea is to understand the farmers’ perspecves, meet their expectaons, and encourage their ownership. This led to the development of a holisc approach in which ICP focuses its acvies not only on producvity and quality of coffee but truly emphasizes the comprehensive livelihood situaon of smallholder families addressing family business, farmer organizaons, climate resilience, youth engagement, gender equity and equal parcipaon of women and men in decision making.

“Our partnership has invested 25 million Euros in ICP acvies in the past 25 years promong meaningful change”, says Rui Miguel Nabeiro, Chair of the Steering Commi©ee of Internaonal Coffee Partners. “Making coffee farming resilient and securing a more prosperous future for farmer families and communies are issues we all need to work on together. It was and it is clear to us that by bundling know-how and resources among us and with farmer communies we can achieve more.”

Back in 1999, Michael R. Neumann began working towards a joint development iniave, which lead to the foundaon of ICP in 2001. The basis was responsible family entrepreneurship on the part of the European shareholders, with the aggregaon of each individual shareholder’s sustainability efforts into one package offering clear advantages.

“It is impressive to realize that its entrepreneurial and ethical approach bore fruit for 25 years in 2026. This exemplifies how consistent and collaborave efforts can lead to meaningful holisc change for the benefit of our partners, the smallholder coffee farming communies in Africa and many other countries”, says Michael R. Neumann.

Impact on the Ground: Improved Coffee Farming and Livelihoods

Since 2001, more than 125,700 farming families have been engaged in ICP projects in 13 coffee producing countries. Sustainable agricultural pracces and diversified producon systems at the farm level have supported smallholder families to improve coffee farming. Tools and pracces to support adaptaon have enhanced the resilience of farming families in the face of changing climate condions. Smallholder farmers have been supported in growing addional crops to diversify their producon for their own food security and to successfully market their products to generate addional family income, and improve their livelihoods.

“Over the past decade, ICP projects in the Amhara region have pioneered an integrated approach that goes beyond supporting smallholder coffee production. By combining climate-smart coffee production practices, strengthened cooperative governance, youth empowerment, and the Gender Household Approach, the projects have contributed to building more resilient and sustainable smallholder coffee-farming households and communities.”- Rahel Adugna, Co-Country Manger, Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung Ethiopia

To this end, working towards establishing and professionalizing farmer organizaons and cooperaves has turned out crucial as they provide member farmers access to relevant services and compeve markets. Since 2001, ICP has worked with more than 2,700 farmer organizaons across its project regions, supporng the establishment of new organizaons and the further development of exisng ones.

With designated trainings, women and youth have been strengthened to parcipate in decision-making at all levels and become change agents in their communies. In 2025, 22% of all training parcipants were young farmers aged 18 to 35, and 45% were women.

As part of a long-term and global partnership, all ICP projects are implemented by Hanns R. Neumann SLung (HRNS), currently in Brazil, Ethiopia, Honduras, Indonesia, Tanzania, Uganda.

“In Indonesia, ICP operates not as a stand-alone project, but as a catalyst for strengthening the farmers’ posion in the coffee sector. The most important learning from the Indonesia experience is that inclusive, long-term engagement is essenal to achieve structural change in the coffee sector”, says Arman Ginng, Co-Country Director HRNS Indonesia. “When ICP engagement began in the regions where we work, coffee sourced from these areas was widely perceived as second-class, characterized by low and inconsistent quality. At that me, few companies were willing to source directly from farmers or cooperaves. Today, the situaon has changed fundamentally. Many cooperaves effecvely bridge farmers and export companies.”

Long-Term Commitment and Sustainable Transformaon In the face of falling yields, rising costs, and growing global uncertainty, ICP remains a reliable and commi©ed partner for coffee farming families and their communies. While the

withdrawn altogether in several countries. These developments highlight the urgency of long-term acon and pre-compeve investment.

“ICP remains commi©ed to its long-term approach and connues contribung to the sustainable transformaon of the coffee sector”, says Rui Miguel Nabeiro. “By sharing experiences and knowledge gained together with farming families and other sector stakeholders, we provide evidence of what can be achieved when pressing issues in coffee communies and landscapes are addressed pre-compevely and collecvely.”

About Internaonal Coffee Partners

(ICP) is a pre-compeve partnership of the leading family-owned European coffee companies, Delta Cafés of Portugal, Franck of Croaa, Joh. Johannson Kaffe of Norway, Lavazza of Italy, Lö)ergs of Sweden, Neumann Kaffee Gruppe of Germany, and Tchibo of Germany. It supports smallholder coffee farmers to improve their livelihoods by becoming more compeve, based on sustainable pracces. In doing so, ICP aims at contribung to a fair and sustainable coffee sector in all coffee-producing countries. Since 2001, ICP has already worked with more than 125,700 smallholder farming families in 13 countries.

Media Contact Alexandra Güntzer

In the face of falling yields, rising costs, and growing global uncertainty, ICP remains a reliable and commi©ed partner for coffee farming families and their communies. While the

ICP Communicaon alexandra.guentzer@hrnsLung.org