2013 scientific study, Thin Months
Revisited, reveals encouraging signs in Mexico and Central America
coffeelands
Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR), in partnership with
the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the
Agroecology and Rural Livelihoods Group (ARLG) of the University of
Vermont, announced today the results of a 2013 scientific study
entitled Thin Months Revisited. The research reexamines the
livelihoods of smallholder coffee-growing families in Mexico,
Guatemala and Nicaragua to understand how farmer welfare has
changed in comparison with a 2007 baseline study in the same
countries.
The 2007 study, led by CIAT researchers with participation from
the Keurig Green Mountain Supply Chain Outreach team, was intended
to determine the state of affairs for coffee farmers in Latin
American communities where the company sources its coffee. More
than 100 smallholder coffee farmers were interviewed about their
livelihoods and researchers found that seasonal hunger was a major
concern for the company’s agricultural supply chain.
“These results had a sobering effect on us and on many others in
the Fair Trade coffee movement,” said Rick Peyser, Director of
Social Advocacy and Supply Chain Community Outreach at Keurig Green
Mountain. Sixty-seven percent of the coffee farmers surveyed were
experiencing extreme food scarcity for three to eight months of the
year, known as the “thin months” or los meses flacos in Spanish.
This refers to a several month period when coffee earnings run out
before the next harvest, resulting in a time of seasonal
hunger.
In response to these 2007 findings, Keurig Green Mountain
established a strategic, research-based and farmer-advised approach
to combat food security, with initiatives designed to increase home
food production, improve food storage capabilities, provide farmers
with tools and training to diversify income, expand access to
market and increase coffee yields from better growing practices.
Over the past three years, the company has directed more than $15
million toward food security programming in its supply chain, with
a particular focus in the three research countries. Keurig Green
Mountain has also galvanized the coffee industry behind this issue
through a film called “After the Harvest.”
In 2013, with the help of ARLG, CIAT and Keurig Green Mountain
returned to Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua to interview many of
the same participants from the original study. The 2013 results
show advancements in food security since 2007, which may be
partially attributed to initiatives that companies like Keurig
Green Mountain have invested in over the past several years.
“Our study was able to provide a direct link between the
projects that Keurig Green Mountain funded and a reduction in the
number of thin months experienced by some families in Chiapas and
Nicaragua. In Chiapas specifically, families participating in food
security projects decreased the number of thin months twice as much
as those who did not participate,” said Ernesto Méndez, UVM
professor and lead of the Agroecology and Rural Livelihoods Group
(ARLG).
“The new study offers irrefutable evidence that the situation
had improved for most families over the last six years,
particularly with respect to food security. Across study locations,
the average number of thin months has declined from 3.81 in 2007 to
2.83 today," said Peter Läderach, a CIAT scientist and one of the
research leaders. Some of the improvements revealed in Thin Months
Revisited included examples of families who increased their number
of income sources, often by incorporating food crops in their
farming activities.
By adding more diverse crops that can be consumed or sold,
families are more resilient to extreme changes in coffee prices and
have steadier incomes year-round. “Diversifying into other crops
helps smooth out household income across the year and makes
families more resilient to a volatile coffee market. A more
resilient farmer will continue producing coffee and supply us with
the quality and quantity we need to grow our business,” said
Peyser.
While conditions have improved since 2007, food security and
other aspects of social and economic development remain a serious
issue in Mexico and Central America. Not only do many farmers still
struggle to get through the “thin months,” but they must also
contend with the growing pressure that climate change has put on
the natural resources needed by farmers to grow food and coffee.
For this reason, in 2012, Keurig Green Mountain committed more than
$5.6 million in grants to food security programs, benefitting over
200,000 individuals throughout their supply chain in partnership
with NGOs like CIAT, Catholic Relief Services, Heifer International
and Save the Children.
Keurig Green Mountain has a goal to engage one million people in
its supply chain to significantly improve livelihoods by 2020. To
read the full Thins Months Revisited report, please visit
www.AfterTheHarvest.org.
About the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
(CIAT)
Working with partners across the developing world, the
International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) – a member of
the CGIAR Consortium – develops technologies, methods, and new
knowledge that better enable farmers, especially smallholders, to
enhance eco-efficiency in agriculture – that is, make production
competitive and profitable as well as sustainable and resilient
through economically and ecologically sound use of natural
resources and purchased inputs. With headquarters near Cali,
Colombia, CIAT conducts research for development in tropical
regions of Latin America, Africa, and Asia. www.ciat.cgiar.org.
CIAT is lead center for the program on CGIAR Research Program
Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), which helps
smallholders adapt to and mitigate the effects of rising
temperatures and increasingly unpredictable rains.
www.ccafs.cgiar.org
About the Agroecology and Rural Livelihoods Group
(ARLG)
The Agroecology and Rural Livelihoods Group (ARLG) is a research
group within the Department of Plant and Soil Science at the
University of Vermont. ARLG research and teaching efforts focus on
developing and applying transdisciplinary approaches that analyze
interactions among agriculture, livelihoods, and environmental
conservation in tropical and temperate rural landscapes. Most of
this work also utilizes a Participatory Action Research approach
(PAR), in an effort to directly support conservation and rural
development. For more information visit:
http://www.uvm.edu/~agroecol/
About Keurig Green Mountain, Inc.
As a leader in specialty coffee, coffee makers, teas and other
beverages, Keurig Green Mountain (Keurig) (NASDAQ: GMCR), is
recognized for its award-winning beverages, innovative Keurig®
brewing technology, and socially responsible business practices.
The Company has inspired consumer passion for its products by
revolutionizing beverage preparation at home and in the workplace.
Keurig supports local and global communities by investing in
sustainably-grown coffee and by its active involvement in a variety
of social and environmental projects. By helping consumers drink
for themselves, we believe we can brew a better world. For
more information visit: www.KeurigGreenMountain.com. To purchase
Keurig® products visit: www.Keurig.com or www.Keurig.ca.
Keurig routinely posts information that may be of importance to
investors in the Investor Relations section of its website,
www.KeurigGreenMountain.com, including news releases and its
complete financial statements, as filed with the SEC. The Company
encourages investors to consult this section of its website
regularly for important information and news. Additionally, by
subscribing to the Company’s automatic email news release delivery,
individuals can receive news directly from Keurig as it is
released.
KGM-G, KGM-S, KGM-US
Keurig Green Mountain, Inc.Sandy Yusen, 802-488-1462Dir.,
Corporate Communicationssandy.yusen@gmcr.comorCIATNathan Russell,
+57 595 928 1525Head, Communicationsn.russell@cgiar.org
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