In the first six months of this year, 81,319 metric tons of Utz Certified Good Inside coffee was sold, an increase of 38 percent compared to first six months of 2010. Not only the sale of certified coffee has increased significantly, the programs for cocoa and tea are expanding rapidly as well. 20,300 metric tons of Utz Certified cocoa and 1,778 metric tons of Utz Certified tea have been sold in the first half of 2011. These figures show an increase in sales of 76 percent for cocoa and an increase of 46 percent for tea compared to the same period last year.
Brazil remains the largest supplier of Utz Certified coffee with 36 percent of the total sales volume; followed by Vietnam (23 percent), Honduras (18 percent), India (6 percent) and Colombia (5 percent). In terms of coffee species, Arabica and Robusta coffees both experienced a growth in sales of 28 percent. The increased interest in Robusta coffees shows sustainably produced Robusta is winning terrain in sales compared to Arabica.
With 77 percent of the total sales volume, Cote d'Ivoire is the largest supplier of Utz Certified cocoa. In second place is Dominican Republic with 17 percent, followed by Ghana (4 percent) and Peru and Vietnam (both 1 percent). There are now 102.489 Utz Certified cocoa producers in the program.
Utz Certified is one of the largest sustainability programs for coffee, cocoa and tea in the world. Brands that have committed themselves to the sourcing of (sustainable) Utz Certified raw materials are global market leaders. Farmers are trained in the professionalization of their agricultural practice and operational management with care for people and environment. This improves the quality of their products and allows them to produce higher volumes at lower costs. Moreover, farmers who work with Utz Certified in the global marketplace receive a premium for their crop and they don't have to pay an annual fee for taking part in the program. The Utz Certified tracking system subsequently guarantees that the raw materials have actually been grown and harvested in a responsible manner. For more information: http://www.utzcertified.org.
