Biyernes, Hulyo 19, 2013

NESTLE PHILIPPINES ANOTHER MILESTONE FOR ITS CONTINUED SUPPORT ON FILIPINOS GROWING COFFEE INDUSTRY..

PAG-USAPAN NATIN-JUVY DE GUZMAN

Nescafé formally opens the Nestlé Lipa Integrated Coffee Center (LICC)


Nescafé, the world’s leading instant coffee brand, continues its 75th anniversary celebrations with the formal inauguration of the Nestlé Lipa Integrated Coffee Center (LICC) last July 16 in Lipa, Batangas City.

The Nestlé LICC is an agricultural research and development hub that aims to assist coffee farmers in Luzon improve the quality and quantity of their yield. Initiated by Nestlé Philippines, Inc. (NPI) and envisioned as a one-stop shop for coffee growers in the region, the center operates based on four main objectives: to expose farmers to the best Robusta coffee farming technology from Nestle, provide a venue for the training of these farmers on the proper technologies of Robusta coffee production, propagate good coffee planting materials for distribution to farmers, and share viable farming techniques to increase productivity while lowering production cost.

“We mark an important chapter of Nescafé’s history with the completion of the Nestlé LICC and the formal opening of all its operations,” said Edith de Leon, Nestlé Philippines senior vice president and head of Corporate Affairs, Nestlé Philippines. “This is a significant milestone which underlines our continuing support of the Philippine coffee industry and our commitment to creating shared value for its various stakeholders, especially the small coffee farmers.”

End-to-end services
A five-hectare, P25-million facility, the Nestlé LICC prominently features a Robusta production nursery with a current capacity to cultivate 500,000 coffee seedlings, which will be distributed to growers at cost. Over time, it is projected to increase its planting capacity to accommodate as much as 1,000,000 seedlings and become a major source of coffee planting material in the country.

The Nestlé LICC also plays a key role in propagating the Nestlé Better Farming Practices, which adhere to the principles of the Sustainable Agricultural Initiative (SAI) and the 4C (Common Code for the Coffee Community), by serving as a local R&D center for new coffee selections and a training and techno-demo center. The training programs available at the facility include Coffee Technology Training for new farmers, Coffee Specialist Training for large-scale coffee plantation personnel and Department of Agriculture technicians, and on-the-job training that focuses on the end-to-end technology of coffee growing.

Apart from these, the Nestlé LICC also houses a buying station where farmers can sell their produce directly to Nestlé at a buying price aligned with global market prices, and a composting facility for organic fertilizer.

Supporting the local coffee industry
The Nestlé LICC is only the second facility of its kind in the Philippines -- after the Nestlé Experimental and Demonstration Farm (NEDF) in Tagum City, Davao del Norte -- and plays an integral role in the local implementation of the NESCAFÉ Plan, a global initiative that supports responsible farming, production and consumption.

According to de Leon, Nestlé Philippines hopes that the Nestlé LICC will replicate the success of NEDF in Mindanao and contribute to the growth of the local coffee industry by addressing its various challenges, including the disparity between local demand and supply. Citing 2012 figures, she revealed that local demand for coffee beans totaled to over 70,000 metric tons (MT), while local production hit only 25,000 MT.

Further, she states that the opening of the Nestlé LICC will also help the company—the country’s biggest buyer of Robusta coffee beans—secure its long-term supply of coffee.

“Through the NESCAFÉ Plan, we aim to reverse the decline in local coffee production and help the country achieve coffee self-sufficiency,” added de Leon. “The opening of the Nestlé LICC represents the next big step in achieving this goal.” (VerGarciaBlogs)

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