STiR coffee and tea magazine

STiR coffee and tea 29 But panic? Not so much. In Brazil's case, the farming of coffee is linked to little deforestation these days. And sys- tems for compliance are at least partly in place. Much of Brazil's crop, espe- cially for specialty production, is already audited under international certification programs as well as the nation's own laws and regulations. Instead of alarm, the outlook among many Brazilian coffee stakeholders ap- pears to be one of cautious optimism. The nation's industry has a deep vein of capital, companies, collaboration, talent, technical capabilities, technology, and government support. Despite Brazil's loss of reputation from the illegal destruction of forest land in the Amazon region, its environmental laws and regulations ensure protections in most of the nation. The upshot may well be that the EU law actually reinforces Brazil's leadership in coffee, expanding its market share — potentially at the expense of other coun- tries like Peru, where coffee-linked defor- estation remains a problem, or Colombia, where smallholders have fewer technical resources and less support, even if they don't harm habitats. "Brazilian coffee is 'safe' in this matter," says Henrique Sloper, owner of Fazenda Camocim, a specialty farm in Espírito San- to State. He cites Brazil's Legal Reserve Area law, set in 1935, which requires rural landowners to put aside a high proportion of their property, ranging from 20–80% across different states, for wild growth of native trees and vegetation. After a major new forest law was enacted in 2012, the Reserve Area re- quirement has been reinforced by digital tracking under the Rural Environmental Registration (Cadastro Ambiental Rural, CAR). "Without our CAR, there is no way we can run our farm," Sloper says. These observations are echoed by Fabricio Andrade, CEO of SanCoffee, a B-corp cooperative in Minas Gerais state: "The law should have little impact, because Brazilian legislation does not al- low deforestation in areas where coffee is produced." Instead, he says Brazilian producers should see this law and the global sustainability movement as an op- portunity to add value to their coffee. Similarly, Gustavo Victorio, an audi- tor and agribusiness specialist, sees Bra- zil's forestry code as a competitive advan- tage for the coffee sector. "There is no other commodity ex- porter country with this sort of require- ment." He believes that the EU code will shape similar laws around the world, fur- ther giving Brazil an edge. "All players in our coffee chain must be in tune, and traceability through block- chain technology, for instance, may be of great help in this," Victorio says. A few Brazilian exporters have already begun using blockchain to validate their beans, prompted by demand for low-carbon cof- Some producers in Brazil favor shade-grown cultivation to support greater biodiversity. Photo by K. J. Yeung, courtesy of RGC Coffee. Photo by K. J. Yeung, courtesy of RGC Coffee.

• Cover