Nespresso's Reviving Origins program

Launch of new Ugandan coffee marks second year of success for Nespresso’s Reviving Origins program, following productivity boost in regions in Zimbabwe and Colombia where coffee is under threat

• Nespresso’s Reviving Origins program celebrates second year by introducing new coffee, AMAHA awe UGANDA, from the Rwenzori Mountains
• Investment, training and resources provides Rwenzori coffee farmers with the tools to improve their livelihoods through the increase of the quality of their crop
• Reviving Origins program drove productivity boost of 9% in Eastern Zimbabwe and 10% in Caquetá, Colombia for 2018/2019

Lausanne, Switzerland, 26 May 2020 – Nespresso today introduces AMAHA awe UGANDA, ‘Hope of Uganda’, a new and seasonal coffee from the Rwenzori Mountains of Uganda made possible only through the company’s unique Reviving Origins program. Launched in 2019, the Reviving Origins program aims to restore coffee production in regions where it is under threat.

In Uganda, climate change, poor farming practices and economic hardship has meant that the production of high quality coffee has been a challenge over recent years. As part of the Reviving Origins program and in partnership with Agri Evolve, a young agribusiness dedicated to improving farmer productivity, Nespresso is working with more than 2,000 farmers, providing training and expertise to improve coffee quality and productivity in addition to establishing sustainable farming practices.

Guillaume Le Cunff, CEO of Nespresso said: “Coffee is the lifeblood of entire communities across the globe. In many regions, coffee farming is threatened for reasons such as climate change, conflict and a shifting global economy. Through the Reviving Origins program, Nespresso provides support to struggling coffee farming areas and helps breathe new life into local economies and, most importantly, communities in these regions.”

Formally launched in 2019, the Reviving Origins program aims to revive coffee agriculture and local coffee economies in regions affected by adversities such as conflict, economic hardship and environmental disasters. The program provides support to rebuild sustainable livelihoods for farmers and their communities while preserving the future of some of the world’s rarest, most exquisite coffees. Nespresso is investing a total of CHF 10 million in the program over a period of five years (2019-2023). The Reviving Origins program is an integral part of the Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program, the brand’s sustainable sourcing model in coffee producing countries.

Jonny Rowland, Owner and Managing Director of Agri Evolve said: “Our partnership with Nespresso enables us to provide ongoing support to the Rwenzori coffee farmers. Through community projects and teamwork, growth and development are not only within the coffee farm but also in the improved environmental and social standards of the community. The Rwenzori coffee farmers now have the opportunity to share their premium quality coffee with the world, leading to higher household incomes as well as giving communities and families confidence for a sustainable future in coffee farming for the generations to come.”

The AMAHA awe UGANDA coffee will be available from May 2020 in 31 countries across the world, alongside Reviving Origins coffees TAMUKA mu ZIMBABWE and ESPERANZA de COLOMBIA - both back for 2020 following their initial launch last year.

The Reviving Origins program’s long-term aim is to establish these under threat coffees as permanent blends, available all year round for consumers, by helping farmers to increase the quality and the yield of their coffee, which brings crucial economic benefits for the regions involved, and leveraging strong partners in each of the origins.

HIGH QUALITY COFFEE YIELD INCREASES IN ZIMBABWE AND CAQUETÁ, COLOMBIA

Since its launch last year, the Reviving Origins program has already been a significant success in Zimbabwe and Caquetá, Colombia, two regions where coffee production has been under threat in recent years.

n Zimbabwe, coffee production has been under pressure for a number of years, falling from 15,000 tons in the late 1980s to just 500 tons in 2017. In Colombia, almost 50 years of conflict has meant many farmers abandoned their lands and coffee almost disappeared from Caquetá and El Rosario.

In both countries, Nespresso provides continuous training on quality and productivity, as well as free technical assistance through its agronomist network. It also addresses infrastructure challenges that exist in these areas by building wet mills or helping to establish coffee cooperatives.

As a result, productivity has increased. The availability of AAA high quality coffee has grown by 9% in the Manicaland province of Zimbabwe and 10% in Caquetá, Colombia, from 2018 to 2019.

 

TECHNOLOGY UNLOCKS TRANSPARENCY FOR TAMUKA mu ZIMBABWE COFFEE

This year, Nespresso is, for the first time, making its AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program data publicly available using blockchain technology. Introduced for Zimbabwe initially, a new Nespresso platform traces the AAA coffee from farms in Zimbabwe all the way through to the Nespresso production centre in Switzerland. Through the Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program, the company has had a traceability process in place since the program’s inception in 2003, making it possible to track coffee back to individual farms.

Users of the blockchain platform will be able to zoom in on specific farms, where they can find a breakdown of the total coffee produced at farm level and the amount of high quality coffee bought by Nespresso.

Guillaume Le Cunff, CEO of Nespresso added: “We know that consumers are more and more interested to know where their coffee is coming from. Thanks to our AAA Sustainable Quality™ Program, we have had traceability back to individual farms in our value chain for over 15 years. I am pleased that thanks to this blockchain initiative, we can now take it one step further and invite our customers to discover the farmers behind their TAMUKA mu ZIMBABWE coffee”.

Consumers can access the blockchain platform here

INTRODUCING THE AMAHA awe UGANDA COFFEE

‘Hope of Uganda’ in Lhukonzo, a local language in Uganda, is a single origin coffee that carries rare sandalwood notes and elegant florals with medium acidity and body. An intensity 8 espresso, AMAHA awe UGANDA grows in a unique terroir, where shade and nutrients provided by banana trees create a true Arabica dreamland. In a Latte Macchiato, the biscuit and discrete fruity notes come alive in a balanced and sweet cup.

About the Reviving Origins program

Nespresso first discovered the potential of reviving a forgotten coffee when it ventured to South Sudan in 2011. The limited edition SULUJA ti SOUTH SUDAN became the country’s second export after oil in 2015 and 2016, and helped to diversify the economic base of the world’s youngest nation. In 2016, Nespresso launched the limited editions AURORA de la PAZ, its first coffee from the Caquetá, Colombia, conflict region, and CAFECITO de CUBA the first Cuban coffee to come to the United States in more than fifty years (exclusive for the US). In 2019, Nespresso officially launched its Reviving Origins program alongside new single-origin coffees from Eastern Zimbabwe - TAMUKA mu ZIMBABWE - and Caquetá, Colombia - ESPERANZA de COLOMBIA - followed by CAFECITO de PUERTO RICO (exclusive for the US), supporting the rebuilding of coffee farming in Puerto Rico after hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017.

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European Commission steps up fight against money laundering and terrorist financing

The European Commission has today put forward a comprehensive approach to further strengthen the EU's fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

The Commission has published an ambitious and multifaceted Action Plan, which sets out concrete measures that the Commission will take over the next 12 months to better enforce, supervise and coordinate the EU's rules on combating money laundering and terrorist financing. The aim of this new, comprehensive approach is to shut down any remaining loopholes and remove any weak links in the EU's rules.

Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said: "We need to put an end to dirty money infiltrating our financial system. Today we are further bolstering our defences to fight money laundering and terrorist financing, with a comprehensive and far-reaching Action Plan. There should be no weak links in our rules and their implementation. We are committed to delivering on all these actions - swiftly and consistently – over the next 12 months. We are also strengthening the EU's global role in terms of shaping international standards on fighting money laundering and terrorism financing.”

The Commission has also published today a more transparent, refined methodology to identify high-risk third countries that have strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing regimes that pose significant threats to the EU's financial system. This will enhance our engagement with third countries and ensure greater cooperation with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Finally, the Commission has also adopted a new list of third countries with strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing frameworks.

Action Plan for a Comprehensive EU policy on Preventing Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

Today's Action Plan is built on six pillars, each of which is aimed at improving the EU's overall fight against money laundering and terrorist financing, as well as strengthening the EU's global role in this area. When combined, these six pillars will ensure that EU rules are more harmonised and therefore more effective. The rules will be better supervised and there will be better coordination between Member State authorities.

The six pillars are as follows:

1. Effective application of EU rules: the Commission will continue to monitor closely the implementation of EU rules by Member States to ensure that national rules are in line with the highest possible standards. In parallel, today's Action Plan encourages the European Banking Authority (EBA) to make full use of its new powers to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing.
2. A single EU rulebook: while current EU rules are far-reaching and effective, Member States tend to apply them in a wide variety of different manners. Diverging interpretations of the rules therefore lead to loopholes in our system, which can be exploited by criminals. To combat this, the Commission will propose a more harmonised set of rules in the first quarter of 2021.
3. EU-level supervision: currently it is up to each Member State to individually supervise EU rules in this area and as a result, gaps can develop in how the rules are supervised. In the first quarter of 2021, the Commission will propose to set up an EU-level supervisor.
4. A coordination and support mechanism for Member State Financial Intelligence Units: Financial Intelligence Units in Member States play a critical role in identifying transactions and activities that could be linked to criminal activities. In the first quarter of 2021, the Commission will propose to establish an EU mechanism to help further coordinate and support the work of these bodies.
5. Enforcing EU-level criminal law provisions and information exchange: Judicial and police cooperation, on the basis of EU instruments and institutional arrangements, is essential to ensure the proper exchange of information.The private sector can also play a role in fighting money laundering and terrorist financing. The Commission will issue guidance on the role of public-private partnerships to clarify and enhance data sharing.
6. The EU's global role: the EU is actively involved within the Financial Action Task Force and on the world stage in shaping international standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. We are determined to step up our efforts so that we are a single global actor in this area. In particular, the EU will need to adjust its approach to third countries with deficiencies in their regime regarding anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing that put our Single Market at risk. The new methodology issued alongside this Action Plan today provides the EU with the necessary tools to do so. Pending the application of the revised methodology, today's updated EU list ensures better alignment with the latest FATF (Financial Action Task Force) list.

To ensure inclusive discussions on the development of these policies, the Commission launched a public consultation today on the Action Plan. Authorities, stakeholders and citizens will have until 29 July to provide their feedback.

Refined methodology

The Commission has today published a new methodology to identify high-risk third countries that have strategic deficiencies in their national anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing regimes, which pose significant threats to the EU's financial system. The aim of this new methodology is to provide more clarity and transparency in the process of identifying these third countries. The key new elements concern: (i) the interaction between the EU and FATF listing process; (ii) an enhanced engagement with third countries; and (iii) reinforced consultation of Member States experts.The European Parliament and the Council will have access to all relevant information at the different stages of the procedures, subject to appropriate handling requirements.

Updated List

Under the Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD), the Commission has a legal obligation to identify high-risk third countries with strategic deficiencies in their regime regarding anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing. Pending the application of the above-mentioned refined methodology, the Commission has today revised its list, taking into account developments at international level since 2018. The new list is now better aligned with the lists published by the FATF.

Countries which have been listed: The Bahamas, Barbados, Botswana, Cambodia, Ghana, Jamaica, Mauritius, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Panama and Zimbabwe.

Countries which have been delisted: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Ethiopia, Guyana, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Sri Lanka and Tunisia.

The Commission amended the list in the form of a Delegated Regulation. It will now be submitted to the European Parliament and Council for approval within one month (with a possible one-month extension).Given the Coronavirus crisis, the date of application of today's Regulation listing third countries – and therefore applying new protective measures – only applies as of 1 October 2020. This is to ensure that all stakeholders have time to prepare appropriately. The delisting of countries, however, is not affected by this and will enter into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal.

Background

The Commission's Anti-Money Laundering Package of July 2019 highlighted a number of weaknesses in the EU's anti-money laundering / countering the financing of terrorism framework. While the transposition and entry into force of recent legislation will address some of these issues, other problems remain. In response to this package, the European Parliament and the Council invited the Commission to investigate what steps could be taken to achieve a more harmonised set of rules, better supervision, including at EU level, as well as improved coordination among Financial Intelligence Units. Today's Action Plan is the Commission's reply to this call for action, and the first step to achieve the Commission's priority to deliver a new, comprehensive framework to fight money laundering and terrorist financing. The new methodology to identify and mitigate threats that strategic deficiencies in the anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing of third countries pose to the integrity of the EU's financial system, also issued today, will further equip the EU to deal with external risks.

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