{"id":121244,"date":"2026-08-27T11:23:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-27T11:23:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/121244\/"},"modified":"2026-08-27T11:23:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T11:23:19","slug":"nestle-tackles-soil-degradation-and-farmer-exodus-in-bid-to-futureproof-coffee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/121244\/","title":{"rendered":"Nestl\u00e9 tackles soil degradation and farmer exodus in bid to futureproof coffee"},"content":{"rendered":"

How Nestl\u00e9 is futureproofing coffee productionNestl\u00e9 targets soil health to strengthen long-term coffee productionDegraded soils threaten yields, quality, costs and farmer resilienceOver 100,000 farmers trained across 15 coffee-producing countriesRegenerative practices cut green coffee emissions by 18.3% since 2018Industry increasingly views regeneration as essential for future supply<\/p>\n

Nestl\u00e9 is futureproofing one of its most important categories \u2013 coffee \u2013 and it\u2019s starting at the very source to do it.<\/p>\n

The maker of Nescaf\u00e9 and Nespresso is turning its attention to the soil beneath its coffee plants in a bid to safeguard future coffee supplies.<\/p>\n

\u201cSoil is a complex, living system, and its health directly affects the crops grown in it,\u201d says Pascal Chapot, head of agriculture at Nestl\u00e9. <\/p>\n

Degraded soil is therefore a direct threat to bean quality and supply, as well as the coffee-growing communities that rely on the crop for their livelihoods. This is especially concerning as soils across many of the world\u2019s premier coffee-growing regions are already under extreme stress.<\/p>\n

\u201cYears of intensive farming of a crop ultimately best suited to cooler, cloud forest environments have left many soils depleted,\u201d says Chapot. \u201cThey lack the organic matter needed to support microbial networks, regulate nutrient uptake and retain water, all of which are essential for healthy, resilient plant growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

And the degradation is already starting to show through yield variability, poor crop resilience and increased production costs.<\/p>\n

To make matters worse, conditions are continuing to deteriorate, with The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)<\/a> warning that 90% of the world\u2019s soil will be degraded by 2050 if current trends continue.<\/p>\n

And the stakes are particularly high for coffee, as climate change, disease pressure and declining productivity in some growing regions already contribute to market volatility and periods of record-high coffee prices<\/a>, increasing pressure on producers and manufacturers. <\/p>\n

But Nestl\u00e9\u2019s confident it can turn things around, with Chapot saying the world\u2019s biggest CPG knows \u201cthings can be done differently\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"coffeeRegenerative practices in coffee farming include intercropping with other trees to provide shade for coffee plants. (Image: Getty\/JR Slompo)Nestl\u00e9\u2019s regenerative coffee plan<\/p>\n

The food and beverage giant is working with farmers to introduce regenerative agriculture practices across its supplier regions as part of what it calls the Nescaf\u00e9 Plan.<\/p>\n

Practices include intercropping with other trees to provide shade for coffee plants, supporting biodiversity, and cover cropping to protect against soil erosion.<\/p>\n

Agronomists and field experts have trained more than 100,000 farmers across 15 countries in regenerative agriculture practices. And the Swiss multinational\u2019s working with local scientists to develop and distribute more resilient coffee plantlets that can sustain yields as the climate changes. <\/p>\n

The good news? Nestl\u00e9 says early results are encouraging, with data indicating improvements in soil health that are helping support crop yields and coffee quality.<\/p>\n

And the benefits extend beyond the farm itself, with regenerative agriculture helping to boost farmer incomes through increased productivity, optimised costs and diversified revenue streams.<\/p>\n

However, while Nestl\u00e9 points to encouraging early results, measuring the long-term impact of regenerative agriculture remains a challenge. The company has not disclosed detailed soil health metrics, yield improvements or farmer income data linked to the programme, making it difficult to independently assess outcomes at scale. <\/p>\n

At the same time, the transition to regenerative practices can require upfront investment and significant changes to established farming methods. For some growers, these hurdles may prove difficult without adequate financial and technical support, which Nestl\u00e9 says it\u2019s providing through training programmes and ongoing agronomic assistance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is one of the key underlying principles of the Nescaf\u00e9 Plan, says Chapot. \u201dRecognising that farmer resilience and business resilience are entwined.”<\/p>\n

Moreover, the multinational believes these investments will be crucial to safeguarding the future of coffee. But it\u2019s far from alone in that view.<\/p>\n

Major industry players including Starbucks, JDE Peet\u2019s and Lavazza have also expanded sustainability and climate resilience programmes in recent years, reflecting the growing concern over the long-term viability of coffee production.<\/p>\n

\"ThereRegenerative practices are essential to securing future coffee supplies. (Image: Getty\/Farknot_Architect)Coffee\u2019s future<\/p>\n

For the coffee industry, the implications extend far beyond sustainability targets.<\/p>\n

As climate change, soil degradation and volatile weather patterns continue to threaten yields in key producing regions, companies are recognising that regenerative practices are essential to securing future supplies.<\/p>\n

And the sector faces another challenge \u2013 attracting the next generation of coffee growers. Younger generations are increasingly leaving farming in search of more stable and profitable careers, deterred by low incomes, climate-related risks and the physical demands of agricultural work.<\/p>\n

For coffee companies, this creates a dual threat. Not only is the land becoming harder to farm, but the pool of experienced producers willing to farm it is shrinking. Without improved profitability and resilience at farm level, concerns are growing that ageing farming populations and declining succession rates could accelerate future supply shortages.<\/p>\n

Supporters of regenerative agriculture argue that healthier soils, more resilient crops and diversified sources of income can help make coffee farming a more viable long-term profession. By improving productivity while reducing exposure to climate shocks, these practices could play an important role in retaining existing growers and encouraging younger generations to remain in rural communities.<\/p>\n

The challenge now is scaling these regenerative agriculture across global supply chains and demonstrating that it can deliver measurable environmental, economic and social benefits to farming communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"How Nestl\u00e9 is futureproofing coffee productionNestl\u00e9 targets soil health to strengthen long-term coffee productionDegraded soils threaten yields, quality,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":121245,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[126],"tags":[46974,46975,1716,1119,46976,982,46977,46978,46979,8522,46980,10620,8528,5490,32804,18681,2397,46981,199,30465,46982,34015,46983],"class_list":["post-121244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nestle","tag-agricultural","tag-arabica","tag-background","tag-beverage","tag-branch","tag-coffee","tag-coffee-beans","tag-coffee-farm","tag-coffee-tree","tag-crop","tag-cultivate","tag-farming","tag-field","tag-fresh","tag-green","tag-harvest","tag-healthy","tag-natural","tag-nestle","tag-outdoor","tag-raw","tag-robusta","tag-tropical"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/117167220731496096","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121244\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}