Why
Forest Coffees®?
For 10 years, Belco has been taking concrete action to protect forests through its Forest Coffee® brand.
Forest coffees® are ultra-high-quality coffees grown in well-preserved environments. Our Forest Coffee® brand recognises the know-how of local farmers, and their deep knowledge of coffee agroforestry techniques. It highlights the strength of this model through the environmental, social and economic benefits it brings.
This culture in a forest environment, free of any pesticides or fertilizers, nourished by natural elements, embodies the vision we have of the coffee industry to be as sustainable as possible. This virtuous ecosystem solves the production/preservation equation.
Let's remember that before being produced in full sun for yield reasons, the coffee plant is a small tree, native to Ethiopia, which grows in the shade of larger trees, sheltered from the sun's rays which filter down through the forest canopy. It is this promotion of coffee in its quasi-original state that we strive to highlight.
01
A coffee
100% made
in forest
MINIMUM SHADE
→ 40-60%
TREE SPECIES PRESENT
→ 10 OR MORE
NUMBER OF TREE LAYERS
→ MINIMUM 3
Ethiopie, Jimma, Echemo farm, Khalid Shifa
↓
Far from the sun-drenched fields dedicated to intensive farming, Belco is developing a supply chain of coffees produced in their ancestral home: the forests of Ethiopia.
Forest Coffees enjoy all the benefits of permaculture, where each living species serves a purpose for its neighbour. It is also a demonstration of our strong commitment to preventing the ravages of monoculture: mass deforestation, soil and biodiversity depletion, coffee and water pollution, etc.
By growing coffee in an endemic forest, we are keeping it alive. By giving it economic value, we are preventing its destruction. Effectively solving the preservation/production equation!
02
A coffee
that keeps
on giving
FAIRER
REMUNERATION
3 CROPS, 3 INCOMES
→ COFFEE, HONEY, SPICES
Guereza monkey and Ethiopian log beehives above the coffee shrubs
↓
Forest Coffees® are good for not only those who drink them, but also those who produce them.
We have Belco agronomists in the field who work daily alongside local coffee farmers to bring you a powerful product grown in an environmentally-friendly manner, for which we pay producers according to the quality of their coffee.
The preserved biodiversity produces multiple crops, constituting diverse sources of income: coffee, honey, spices, fruit, wood, etc.
03
A coffee
that loves
shade
ZERO
PESTICIDES
ZERO
FERTILISER
MORE PRECISE
TRACEABILITY
Planting shade trees, Mohamed Ali
↓
Forest Coffees® grow in the shade, but are happy to leave it once picked.
Forest Coffees® have nothing in common with the conventional, industrially prepared coffees bought on stock markets. They are specialty coffees: organic by nature and sourced directly from the farm. This guarantees a unique transparency and traceability. We can even track each coffee back to a single plot.
04
A limited edition
with unlimited
quality
HARVEST
→ SELECTIVELY AND BY HAND
UNIQUE PROFILE
→ 83+
Entrance of the Tatmara farm, Kaffa, Ethiopia
↓
The cherry on top of the nectar: Forest Coffees® are very well cared for and of a rare quality.
The coffee shrubs grow at their own pace and without pesticides in the shade of the canopy.
Cultivated at high altitudes, the cherries ripen slowly are meticulously selected and hand-picked.
This slow farming method infuses the coffee with the forest’s natural wealth, for a particularly flavoursome product.
Want to go
a little further?
↓
Coffee agroforestry.
A document in collaboration with the French Association of Agroforestry
To convey all the benefits of this agricultural practice, Belco has joined forces with the French Association of Agroforestry. This document is the result of a joint effort that illustrates the strength of this model in a playful way.
Discover coffee agroforestry with concrete examples.
↓
Herbarium.
100% from the field.
Ethiopia’s coffee forests are home to an astonishing variety of tree species.
This diversity creates an optimal environment for coffee plants. Imagine a canopy over 50 m high above you...
More than 35 different species of trees have been identified around the coffee trees!
To give you a glimpse of this diversity and its benefits, our team from Addis Ababa agency has explored the forests of southwestern Ethiopia to create this herbarium.
Get a feel for this incredible biodiversity.
