How Starbucks Helps Sustain the Future of Coffee

From The LifeMinute.TV Team

September 12, 2025

Gearing up for National Coffee Day on September 29, Starbucks isn’t just celebrating coffee — they’re honoring the people, places, and purpose behind every cup. Through sustainability initiatives, they’re committed to shaping a future where coffee thrives — for farmers and farming communities and coffee lovers around the world.

Every cup of coffee begins with a story — and for Starbucks, that story includes more than 450,000 farms around the world who work with Starbucks, each growing its finest arabica coffee with care and tradition. But coffee faces a challenge: climate change is threatening its future. Rising temperatures, unpredictable rainfall, and shifting growing conditions are putting livelihoods — and the beloved beverage — at risk. That’s why Starbucks is focused on supporting the future of coffee through programs that help improve productivity, profitability, and climate resilience for farmers, while enhancing coffee quality.

Sourcing Standards
Through Starbucks C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices program, Starbucks works directly with farmers to help improve quality and sustainability. It’s not just about sourcing coffee they say, it’s about building resilience. For more than two decades, Starbucks has worked with third parties including Conservation International to develop and continuously improve C.A.F.E. Practices standards. They maintain visibility into their supply chain, audit farms regularly, and remain committed to transparency, accountability, and building a more sustainable future for coffee.

Farmer Support Centers & Model Farms
Starbucks has a global network of 10 Farmer Support Centers where world-class agronomists share the latest best practices with farmers – and it is open-source agronomy, meaning they share the learnings with everyone, even if they don’t do business with Starbucks. Through the Farmer Support Centers, farmers gain access to things such as water conservation methods, new varietals of disease-resistant coffee trees and advanced soil management techniques. With Starbucks open-source agronomy all coffee farmers are part of a growing network of innovation and support. From regenerative farming and forest conservation to clean water initiatives, Starbucks is taking action to protect coffee-growing communities and ecosystems.

Starbucks also has 70 “model farms” that help promote sustainable practices within their local communities, like shade tree management plans, coffee pruning practices and soil health education. Starbucks agronomists work one-on-one with farmers, building upon traditional growing methods to help the next generation of farmers improve the quality, productivity and profitability of their crops while supporting the implementation of C.A.F.E. Practices across Starbucks coffee supply chain globally.

Climate-Resistant Coffee Trees
One of the most impactful ways Starbucks is taking action at the farm level is by developing new varietals of coffee trees. These varietals were developed over a decade of research and testing by the Starbucks agronomy team at Starbucks global research and development facility at Hacienda Alsacia in Costa Rica, Starbucks first coffee farm. They are naturally resistant to diseases like coffee leaf rust and some of the impacts of climate change and were also selected for their excellent taste and high yield. Climate-resistant coffee trees are a critical part of the effort to help farmers adapt to climate change. At Starbucks two new farms in Costa Rica and Guatemala, hybrid coffee varieties will be studied under different elevations and soil conditions.

For Starbucks, every day is National Coffee Day, and its support and aspirations go far beyond the cup — it invests in a wide variety of initiatives to protect the future of coffee and the people who make it possible. Through decades of investment in ethical sourcing, farmer support, and climate innovation, Starbucks is shaping a resilient, sustainable coffee ecosystem. From the fields of Costa Rica to communities across the globe, Starbucks work helps coffee continue to thrive — not just today, but for generations to come. With every sip, Starbucks invites the world to be part of a story rooted in community, connection, and a shared responsibility for the planet.