Household Income in Coffee

by

Editorial Policy

Published on

Last updated on

living income

(Photo: courtesy of Fairtrade America.)

[A]pproximately 80 percent of the world’s coffee is produced by 17.7 million small-scale coffee farmers, and, according to a pilot study by Fairtrade International and True Price, many coffee farmers continue to struggle to make ends meet despite sustainability pledges in the coffee sector.

This report sheds light on how much coffee farmers earn, as well as Fairtrade’s potential impact on household income. According to the report, most coffee farmers do not earn a living income—defined as sufficient income generated by a rural household to afford a decent standard of living for all the household members—from their coffee. On average, about 50 percent of household income comes from coffee production, but that varied greatly between countries.

Of the seven countries included in this study (Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam), only farmers in Indonesia were earning a living household income. Farmers in Indonesia rely heavily on income from coffee production, but Kenyan farmers depend mainly on other sources of income. Farmers in India and Indonesia were the only ones able to pay their hired workers a living wage using their coffee income.

The coffee sector at large is aware of poverty in coffee growing countries, as well as the general solution: that coffee farmers need to be paid more for their coffee, and consumers need to be making up the difference. Data collected from Indian and Indonesian coffee farmers shows that when production volume matches with a higher coffee price, farm owners and hired workers can make a living wage.

Fairtrade’s overall goal is to see small-scale farmers earn a living income that provides them and their families with a sustainable livelihood. Fairtrade already has a minimum price program, but in the light of this study, the organization intends to do more market development, support diversification into other crops, and help improve yields and farm efficiencies.

Rachel Sandstrom Morrison is Fresh Cup’s associate editor.

Share This Article

Rachel Sandstrom Morrison

Join 7,000+ coffee pros and get top stories, deals, and other industry goodies in your inbox each week.

Other Articles You May Like

Can Liberica Change The Way We Grow Coffee?

Once cultivated in the 19th century to battle coffee leaf rust, liberica, a nearly forgotten coffee species—and its new subvariety, excelsa—may be the answer to the looming threat of climate change.
by Fionn Pooler | February 1, 2023

Good Genes: Genetic Diversity And The Future of Coffee

How the industry is looking to genetic resource conservation to help preserve coffee.
by Chris Ryan | January 12, 2023

New Names, Same Faces: Genetic Accuracy for Yemeni Coffee

In Yemen, coffee varieties are often referred to by colloquial names, which are often inaccurate and don’t reflect real varieties. But a new study is giving farmers more definitive names and greater access to…
by Valorie Clark | November 23, 2022

Contemporary Indonesian Specialty Coffee: A Chat with Three Coffee Processors

The world of Indonesian coffee has changed a lot over the past five years. Here are three coffee processors discussing the highlights and challenges of Indonesian coffee production.
by Mikey Rinaldo | November 11, 2022