USAID and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Join Forces to Help Small-Scale Coffee Growers

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Agency for International Development and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and coffeemakers, announced that they will work together to strengthen social, economic and environmental development in coffee growing communities throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

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The new partnership expands USAID and GMCR's existing joint projects in Brazil, Honduras and Nicaragua to the rest of the region. It will also link the U.S. Government's Feed the Future and Global Climate Change Initiatives to GMCR's support for the rural communities along its coffee supply chain. Future initiatives will focus on enhancing food security, improving nutrition and supporting climate change adaption in certain rural areas from which GMCR sources green coffee.

"This new partnership is a win-win for all of us" said Mark Feierstein, USAID's Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean. "USAID harnesses new ideas and additional resources for development, small-scale farmers improve their livelihoods and GMCR accesses higher-quality sustainably grown coffee and promotes development in source communities."

USAID and GMCR hope to use the new partnership in Latin America to launch future collaboration in coffee-growing communities in other parts of the world.

"Our long-term collaboration with USAID has been an important part of our broader efforts to encourage ongoing health and prosperity for the coffee farming families and communities in our supply chain," said Michael Dupee, GMCR's Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility.

Feierstein and Dupee signed a Memorandum of Understanding during USAID's Public-Private Partnership Week, which runs from October 17-21, 2011 and celebrates 10 years of partnering with the business community to advance global development.

Public Information: 202-712-4810

SOURCE U.S. Agency for International Development