In 1685, Sweden's first cargo of coffee arrives, half a kilo has been imported and arrives at the port of Gothenburg, since then we in Sweden have become accustomed to starting the day with a good cup of coffee. Let's continue this habit, but let the coffee that you have in your cup not only taste good but also do good!
On the occasion of Africa's Industrialization Day on November 20* for sustainable development and poverty eradication, we want to highlight the coffee farmers in Congo, who have been strongly affected by the mineral conflicts that have ravaged the country for decades. The conflicts have not only physically destroyed the plantations and left traces in the form of mines between the coffee plants, they have also affected the possibility of exports. Due to the widespread poverty, which has become even worse due to the conflicts, the coffee farmers have had difficulty cleaning up their plantations and getting their coffee business started again. The coffee farmers who have still been able to grow and harvest have largely risked their lives again, as they have felt compelled to smuggle the coffee to neighboring countries in order to get a slightly better price for their raw materials.
Rutasoka Coffee is working to help revive the coffee industry together with 9,000 coffee farmers in the eastern Congo highlands, organized in two cooperatives (both cooperatives are UTZ certified and follow all guidelines regarding fair working conditions, human rights, child labor, etc.). The cooperatives consist of, among other things, the coffee farmers, that is, those who own the land and manage the plantations. Coffee farmers are often raised in farming families and have extensive knowledge about growing coffee.
To ensure that the plantations are managed sustainably, the coffee growers seek help from the cooperative's agronomists, who provide advice and guidance. The cooperative has a total of around 40 agronomists who work in different areas and who visit the coffee growers on their plantations every day.
The cooperative also has its own employees who work at the washing stations, it is a whole company in itself with competent management and administration. At the washing station there is a person in charge who makes sure everything runs smoothly. Some receive the coffee berries and others make sure the coffee makers get paid. In the processing there are staff who wash the berries, dry them and sort and pack them.
Last but not least, there are quality assurance officers who are responsible for quality assurance and ensuring that the coffee sent to us meets the promised quality.
*Africa Industrialization Day was established in 1990 for sustainable development and poverty eradication. This day brings together African leaders, policymakers, representatives of the private sector, academia, the International Finance Institutions (IFIs) and development partners to pursue common goals that benefit industrialization in Africa. One of Africa's major industries is the coffee industry.
Every little part of the craft is important and everyone in the chain should be paid fairly. It may sound obvious, but unfortunately the world doesn't look like that today.
We at Rutasoka will continue to help revive the coffee industry in Congo, including by providing coffee farmers with new plants so that their coffee farms can develop, and by cutting down coffee plants that no longer produce a sufficient quantity of coffee berries to make it profitable. We will also continue to communicate with the cooperative and the coffee farmers to make more people realize that they do not grow coffee because they are poor, but because it is their profession – the coffee farmers should feel proud of what they do and produce.
We achieve this through continued collaboration with the cooperative's administration and the agronomists working in the field. Our ambition is also to be involved in developing the community around the farms, including by building another clinic.
When you drink your coffee from Rutasoka, you not only get the best Congolese coffee you can find, you also get a product that is created by people with decent working and living conditions.
You help coffee makers and employees at the factory to support themselves and their families.
