The International Finance Corporation(IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has signed an agreement toestablish the first training centre for Vietnamese coffee farmers.
The corporation signed the co-operation agreement with coffee traderAtlantic Commodities Vietnam Ltd, a subsidiary of ECOM Agro-industrialCorporation.
"Adding value to our farmer suppliers through farmer training centresmakes good business sense for ECOM Group, which has been proven throughsimilar projects in Mexico and Uganda," said Alexander Gruber, generaldirector of Atlantic Commodities Vietnam Ltd.
The centre will train Vietnamese coffee farmers to meet internationalcertification standards, improve the sustainability and productivity ofcrops, and increase their earnings.
The centre is part of a larger plan for the IFC to provide investmentand advisory services to help ECOM Group, a global coffee trader,establish several farmer training centres.
The plan includes a 55 million USD, five-year corporate loan facilityfor use in six countries, including Vietnam , which was committed inJune 2008.
The new training centre, which will target 4,000 farmer households overthree years, will help smallholder farmers qualify for sustainablecoffee certifications like Utz, Rainforest, or 4C.
As ECOM and other buyers pay premium prices for certified coffee beans,farmers joining the training centres should see their incomes increasethrough certification.
ACOM and IFC expect about 50,000 non-ACOM farmers to benefit indirectlyfrom exposure to best management practices, and informationdisseminated by the project./.
The corporation signed the co-operation agreement with coffee traderAtlantic Commodities Vietnam Ltd, a subsidiary of ECOM Agro-industrialCorporation.
"Adding value to our farmer suppliers through farmer training centresmakes good business sense for ECOM Group, which has been proven throughsimilar projects in Mexico and Uganda," said Alexander Gruber, generaldirector of Atlantic Commodities Vietnam Ltd.
The centre will train Vietnamese coffee farmers to meet internationalcertification standards, improve the sustainability and productivity ofcrops, and increase their earnings.
The centre is part of a larger plan for the IFC to provide investmentand advisory services to help ECOM Group, a global coffee trader,establish several farmer training centres.
The plan includes a 55 million USD, five-year corporate loan facilityfor use in six countries, including Vietnam , which was committed inJune 2008.
The new training centre, which will target 4,000 farmer households overthree years, will help smallholder farmers qualify for sustainablecoffee certifications like Utz, Rainforest, or 4C.
As ECOM and other buyers pay premium prices for certified coffee beans,farmers joining the training centres should see their incomes increasethrough certification.
ACOM and IFC expect about 50,000 non-ACOM farmers to benefit indirectlyfrom exposure to best management practices, and informationdisseminated by the project./.
