MILAN – Following Hurricane, Fiona Nespresso has committed immediate and ongoing support for coffee farmers in Puerto Rico. Hurricane Fiona was a large, powerful, and destructive Category 4 Atlantic hurricane, which first wreaked havoc in Puerto Rico and then struck the coast of Atlantic Canada.
Fiona developed from a tropical wave that emerged from West Africa, before developing into a tropical depression east of the Leeward Islands on September 14, 2022. Hurricane Fiona made landfall in southwestern Puerto Rico on September 18th and caused flooding in parts of the Island. Nespresso issued the following statement:
VEVEY, Switzerland – Coffee has been a part of Puerto Rico’s vibrant culture, heritage, and economy for generations. On September 18, 2022, Hurricane Fiona devastated the island of Puerto Rico. The storm hit almost five years to the day that Hurricane MarÃa caused catastrophic damage to the island and destroyed more than 80% of the island’s coffee production.
In the weeks following Hurricane Fiona, we have remained in close contact with the individuals and organizations we work with in Puerto Rico to fully assess the situation.
We remain committed to supporting the islands’ coffee farmers and communities—now and in the future. Following some first assessments by TechnoServe and in consultation with affected coffee farmers to identify urgent needs, Nespresso is helping to fund the purchase of tools and light equipment that are essential for farmers to clear debris, care for damaged coffee trees and facilitate the composting of broken branches and trees.
We are optimistic about the future, and TechnoServe estimates that farmers in Puerto Rico will still be able to harvest some high-quality coffee this year. Nespresso is committed to ongoing investment in Puerto Rico, and we will continue to buy high-quality Puerto Rican coffee to help farmers repair, restore and rebuild their farms and strengthen their resilience to future natural disasters. Ongoing conversations with TechnoServe and the Hispanic Federation are defining the details of our investment as we determine where Nespresso support is needed most.
Nespresso: Our long-term commitment to Puerto Rico
Since 2018, Nespresso has worked with TechnoServe, the Hispanic Federation, and others to revive the coffee industry in Puerto Rico. Just days prior to Hurricane Fiona, we celebrated the incredible recovery of Puerto Rico’s coffee harvest, five years since the destruction caused by Hurricanes MarÃa and Irma.
Since 2018, we have invested more than $1.5 million in the revival of the coffee industry in Puerto Rico. Approximately 1,500 farmers on the island have received training opportunities to help them embed sustainable farming practices, and improve the quality of their coffee and productivity of their farms. We also supported the Hispanic Federation to make two million coffee seedlings available to farmers in Puerto Rico, which helped replace coffee trees that were destroyed.
We have seen the way in which coffee farmers fought back and recovered their production after Hurricanes MarÃa and Irma, and we are confident that this resilience will shine through this time as well.
These efforts are a part of our Reviving Origins programme, Nespresso’s long-term approach to revitalising agriculture and local economies through supporting sustainable coffee production in regions impacted by adversity. Since its launch in 2019, the Reviving Origins programme has brought some of the world’s finest and most exclusive coffees back onto the international stage.
