Lima hosted the First National Conference on Technical Assistance and Quality for a Sustainable Coffee Value Chain, an international event that brought together key actors in the coffee sector.

For four days, from August 22nd to 25th, Lima received the key actors in the Peruvian coffee sector value chain who participated in the First National Conference on Technical Assistance and Quality for a Sustainable Coffee Value Chain, organized by the National Quality Institute (INACAL) and the Junta Nacional del Café (JNC), under the Sustainable Development Model for Peruvian Coffee project co-implemented by the Sustainable Commodity Assistance Network (SCAN) and the JNC, and supported by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), with co-funding from The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

The aim of the conference was to promote technical assistance and quality as strategies for strengthening the Peruvian sustainable coffee value chain.

The international market demands certified coffee with high cup quality, sustainably produced and with a low carbon footprint. This forces the country to rethink its production strategy and promote quality technical assistance backed by scientific research, traditional knowledge and innovation.

The international conference was divided into three sections: International course on Methodologies for Technical Assistance in Specialty Coffee, the First National Seminar on Sustainable Coffee Production and Technical Assistance and the First International Workshop on Quality for specialty coffees.

In addition, major innovations were launched such as the National Innovation Centre for Sustainable Coffee Production of Peru – CEINCAFÉ, the National School of Technical Assistance for promoters of sustainable coffee farming and a presentation of the achievements and impacts of the Sustainable Development Model for Peruvian Coffee project.

International course

On the first day of the conference, Fernando Soleibe, Technical Coordinator of specialty coffee from the Cauca Coffee Growers Cooperative (Colombia), explained to participants the importance of technical assistance for the production of specialty coffee as part of the First International Course on Methodologies for Technical Assistance for a sustainable coffee value chain.

“The production of specialty coffee starts from its cultivation. Beginning from the selection of the bean,” said the specialist.

According to Soleibe, the factors for producing good quality coffee in the farm are: good weather, good seeds, well trained staff, good quality inputs, good agricultural practices (an agronomic plan), good hygiene practices, good planting material, good processing practices, and a process control system.

Achievements and impacts of the Sustainable Development Model for Peruvian Coffee Project

Development of Training Materials:

A total of 23 training documents, on topics ranging from Multi-Certification to Good Agricultural practices were developed, reviewed and validated during the project, including among others:

• Guide for an Internal Management System for Multiple Certification
• Tools for Multiple Certification of Coffee Producers Group – Procedures Manual
• 17 leaflets and 8 radio programs on good agricultural practices (presented in almost all the regional radio stations in the coffee growing areas)

Capacity Building; Training of Trainers and Producers:

• Recruited and trained 113 promoters
• 240 courses, with a total of over 3800 participants trained on implementing the training materials developed.
• Over 1500 coffee farmers from 22 organizations received consistent training and technical assistance in 7 regions of the country: Amazonas, San Martín, Cajamarca, Junín, Pasco, Puno and Cusco.
• Also a total of 133 technicians and promoters (TOT), embedded in 23 producer organizations, were trained in 123 courses on different topics related to sustainable agriculture.

Competency Assessments of Internal Inspectors for Certified Coffee:

Under the project, a certification process was developed that included training and skills assessment focusing on the certification of internal inspectors. Necessary competencies for seeds and seedling production as well as for rehabilitation and renovation of coffee plantations were identified. The profiles for master trainers were also assessed.

These certifications have been approved by the Peruvian Ministry of Labor and Employment.

Centre of Excellence:

The Centre for Innovation in Sustainable Coffee Production (CEINCAFÉ) was developed and was officially launched during the Conference.

CEINCAFE is a virtual platform that includes products and services for research, innovation and knowledge to serve the entire coffee sector value chain, with the aim of promoting sustainability and competitiveness.

These and other results led to the successful completion of this project along with an active virtual platform that will continue to help farmers receive technical assistance to produce high quality certified coffee in Peru.

More information on the project and the SCAN Peru platform is available on the SCAN Peru website: scanprogram.org.pe

You can also visit the project’s Facebook page with more news.