A West Yorkshire based artisan coffee roaster have relaunched one of their products to help support the women-only cooperatives where the beans are sourced from.
Dark Woods Coffee will donate the profits from the sales of their Peru Asproagro Coffee throughout the months of March, April and May to help support projects in the area as part of the Café Femenino programme.
Specialising in sourcing and roasting coffees from around the world, the majority of the raw beans are purchased either directly from producers or through longstanding buying arrangements with estates and speciality exporters with the commitment to supporting sustainability close to the team’s heart.
Director Ian Agnew said: “In honour of International Women’s Day, we decided that throughout March, April and May, all proceeds from the sale of our Peru Asproagro Coffee would be donated to the Cafe Femenino Foundation which helps purchase materials and engineering supplies for crop irrigation systems. The irrigation work will provide water in these remote mountainous communities not just for coffee growing, but for food crops to support the community during off-seasons.”
The Dark Woods team have previously helped fund two community infrastructure projects in the villages and this year’s funds will help raise a further £3,000 for the project in Lambayeque.
Founded in 2013, Dark Woods pay above-market prices for the coffee as well as an additional premium for each kilo bought which goes towards the foundation which directly supports these communities.
Ian continues: “Dark Woods has been sourcing coffee from Café Femenino farmers in Peru for several years now and we are proud to work with them. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact, in Peru, where the medical system has been overwhelmed and impacted on the speed and efficiency at which products are brought to market, the market price and the country’s ability to transport goods. Farmers have had to rely upon emergency assistance from the Café Femenino Foundation for basic necessities and food.”
Whilst women have always been crucial part of coffee production in Peru, men have traditionally held the economic power and so in 2003, a group of female farmers united to change this and separate their coffee production to obtain visibility and better financial reward. The movement now includes thousands of women farmers from nine countries across the world.
Alongside their commitment to sustainable sourcing the Dark Woods have established a customer base that includes some of the country’s top cafés and restaurants as well as well-known retailers including Fortnum and Mason and Liberty of London picking up several prestigious industry awards along the way.
For more information on their work with the Café Femenino Foundation and to buy their award winning range of coffees online visit www.darkwoodscoffee.co.uk