How did Commonfolk‘s collaboration with Zukuka Bora in Uganda begin, and how do you ensure that the partnership remains mutually beneficial?
Our collaboration with Zukuka Bora in Uganda started with a shared purpose: to empower coffee farming communities and foster sustainability in the Ugandan coffee industry. We had a connection with a development organisation in Uganda who was certain that coffee could be a tool for positive social impact, so they developed the concept of Zukuka Bora — a company that would provide an international market for the regions farmers, pay the highest price in the country, and provide resources, training and support for the farming communities it worked in. We provided the initial funding for Zukuka Bora through The Cup That Counts, and to date we have sent more than $250,000 to support its expansion.
We were never certain the Zukuka Bora would even be able to generate enough high-quality coffee to also become a commercial partner, but after the first harvest (that yielded around 4 tons of good coffee) they moved from being just a philanthropic partner, to becoming a major supplier. We work closely with them to negotiate the price for each harvest of coffee, and have always maintained that if we can price ourselves out of the market for Zukuka coffee than we’ve actually done our jobs!
Can you shed light on the relationship between Commonfolk and Home Ground, particularly on the successes you’ve achieved in vocational training for the youth?
Home Ground is a vocational training café located in one of our region’s more disadvantaged communities. Since 2018, Home Ground has empowered over 90 of our region’s young people with vocational training in hospitality. We’ve supported Home Ground with donations of coffee, training and funding, to ensure it can continue to develop the next generation of hospitality superstars.
The Shared Value Project focuses on the well-being of coffee farmers in Mexico. How does this align with Commonfolk‘s larger vision, and what are the goals you’re targeting?
The Shared Value Project is the brainchild of Melbourne coffee icon, Ben Whittaker. He was initially working with farmers in Nicaragua but has recently moved to the coffee producing Chiapas region of Mexico, where he is setting up a vocational training café, very similar to Home Ground.
Given the exploitative nature of the conventional coffee value chain, how does Commonfolk plan to continue championing fairness and equity in the industry in the coming years?
Earlier this year, we also merged with long-term collaborators, Kua Coffee, to take over their roasting business. Kua is a social enterprise that works to source and roast ethical coffee, minimise coffee waste, provide funding for climate positive projects at origin, as well as offsetting carbon emissions by 200%. We hope to weave sustainability and environmental impact into the positive social outcomes already supported by The Cup That Counts and Commonfolk more broadly.
For more information on Commonfolk Coffee, please visit https://www.commonfolkcoffee.com.au/
