Coffee sourcing

From Nescafé to Nespresso, the beans we source from farmers around the world go into some of our most iconic brands and bring joy to millions of consumers every day.

At Nestlé, we are passionate about bringing you the best coffee experience, crafted with care and expertise – from bean to cup.

We source most of our coffee from smallholder farmers, making them a key part of our supply chain. With demand for coffee continuing to rise globally, coffee farming communities are often facing a range of complex economic, social and cultural challenges. That is why Nestlé is working to continuously improve our coffee supply chain.

Our coffee across Australia

With a rich heritage spanning decades, we take pride in our commitment to sourcing, producing, and sharing exceptional coffee across Australia. Our coffee is grown, made, and packaged in a way that respects the environment and the people who farm our coffee beans.

In Australia, Nescafé Blend 43, Nescafé GOLD, and Nescafé Coffee Mixes are made from 100% responsibly sourced coffee beans.

Responsibly sourced coffee is traceable to the group of farms where it was grown and is produced in accordance with standards that have been validated as equivalent to our Responsible Sourcing Standard.

Traceability and compliance are verified by independent organisations, such as 4C Services, the Rainforest Alliance, and Fairtrade, which deploy accredited local auditors to assess a range of factors, including social, environmental, economic, and health and safety conditions at farms.

This brings positive benefits throughout the value chain and supports the future supply of higher quality coffee. It gives us clearer visibility about where the coffee came from and how it was grown. At the same time, farmers benefit from accessing additional markets, improving their farming practices, and earning a premium for their coffee. The “win” extends to consumers, who can make informed choices about their purchase.

Our Global coffee community

We believe everyone deserves a great cup of coffee - and that starts with making better choices for the world we live in. For us, that means using our global scale to make a real difference - and unlock the true power of coffee.

We source most of our coffee from smallholders, making them a key part of our global supply chain. With demand for coffee continuing to rise globally, coffee farming communities are often facing a range of complex economic, social, and cultural challenges.

Our aim is to foster conditions to improve yields, quality of harvests, and help protect the environment while promoting sustainable livelihoods.

We're making a difference to coffee farming communities around the world by:

Sustaining Quality
Supporting 120,000+ farmers through our AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program.

Building Resilience
Maximising AAA farmer livelihoods with partners like Fairtrade.

Reviving Origins
Restoring coffee production in regions where it has disappeared.

Our approach to improving our coffee supply globally

Through the Nescafé Plan 2030, we are accelerating an integrated action plan to support a more inclusive future for our coffee value chains. Regenerative agriculture is at the heart of the Plan: working with farmers to help them adopt regenerative agriculture practices that aim to contribute simultaneously to reducing carbon emissions, improving farmers’ income, and creating better social conditions. Independent assessments measure the impacts of these programs and help to improve our understanding of best practices.

We also support and implement various types of training for farmers that support their economic resilience and build a body of knowledge around best practices.

Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program

Launched in 2003 in collaboration with the Rainforest Alliance, the Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program aims to enable Nespresso to offer the highest quality coffee, while improving the livelihoods of farmers and their communities and protecting the environment.

Nespresso and its partners are aiming to plant 32 million trees in and around coffee farms in nine countries by 2030. This is an important part of Nespresso’s strategy to help coffee growers adapt to climate change, helping to deliver many important benefits, such as reduced soil erosion, water provision, and temperature regulation.

Learn more about Nespresso’s ethical and environmental efforts.

Transparency in our coffee supply

We have a constant focus on the traceability of our coffee. Knowing where our beans come from is essential. We engage with suppliers and farmers to create positive change by supporting them to improve their practices.

Nespresso regularly publishes the Positive Cup report, which details work throughout its 18 AAA sourcing regions. In May 2023, Nescafé published its latest Nescafé Plan 2030 Progress Report, with plans to make that a yearly publication.