The International Coffee Week (ICW) is an event held to bring together coffee growers, roasters, exporters, tasters, suppliers, entrepreneurs, baristas, coffee shop owners and enthusiasts.

This year, the ICW takes place between November 7th and 9th, at Expominas, in Belo Horizonte. The event has an extensive offer of courses, competitions, seminars and lectures, in addition to hosting the largest trade show in the industry. The highlight this year is its vast agenda of simultaneous events, gatherings, seminars, courses, competitions and cupping sessions (coffee tasting), divided into three theme areas: Market & Consumption, Knowledge & Innovation, Business & Entrepreneurship. In addition to the trade show, the event will host the Global Coffee Platform Conference to discuss and present several key contents for the sustainability of coffee growing in Brazil and in the world. Cecafe – the Brazilian Exporters Coffee Council, will be attending the conference and taking part in several lectures, proactively defending Brazilian coffee growing sustainability.

The ICW focuses on developing the Brazilian market and promoting the quality of Brazilian coffee for consumption domestically and in buyer countries, in addition to fostering the sector’s economic and social results.

As in the previous edition, Cecafe—as a legitimate representative and champion of the interests of the exporting sector—will be present with its institutional booth, aiming to play an active part in the relevant national and global discussions on sustainability and, consequently, to expand and promote its projects and programs, narrowing its ties with stakeholders in the coffee business.

Reaffirming important partnerships with the export trade, research and teaching institutions, public and private companies, NGOs and associations, Cecafe leads this multi-stakeholder booth. Cecafe develops paramount actions together with Inpacto institute (Instituto Pacto Nacional para Erradicação do Trabalho Escravo) and Fundação Neumann, with the support of 3 Corações and Cooxupé.

Each strategic partner has different actions: InPACTO’s mission is to eradicate slave-like working conditions in Brazil’s several economic sectors. Cecafe will attend the event Café em Pauta with its institutional presentation and highlight to socioenvironmental projects. Fundação Neumann, in turn, has its roots in the coffee agribusiness, promoting sustainable development by empowering producers and their families, as well as Cooxupé and Grupo 3 Corações, which employ sustainability in their operations.

By establishing Social Responsibility and Sustainability as one of its main pillars, Cecafe will present its proposed programs and action plan for the next years, based on strengthening partnerships and expanding actions towards sustainability in Brazilian coffee growing. It will thus be possible to show how partnerships can boost results and promote dialogue between different institutions that have common objectives.

Cecafe recognizes the challenges in sustainability and understands that we can overcome them by joining together our strength and expertise—as it was shown in the ICW 2018 initiative.

These initiatives are open to all our members and coffee chain representatives that wish to engage in such important mission together with us.

Marcos Matos – CECAFÉ CEO
Lilian Vendrametto – CECAFÉ Sustainability Manager