Nespresso Unveils Study at the Rainforest Alliance Sustainability Workshop Demonstrating Significant Enhancements in Farmer Welfare

New York, USA (ots) -

Measurable improvements in social, environmental and economic
conditions for Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality(TM) Farms in
Colombia

10 Years of cooperation with the Rainforest Alliance to drive
sustainable quality

On the occasion of the Rainforest Alliance Sustainability and
Certification Innovation Workshop, Nespresso CEO Jean-Marc Duvoisin
and Rainforest Alliance President, Tensie Whelan were on hand for the
presentation of the results of an impact study demonstrating
significant improvements in social, economic and environmental
factors for farmers who are part of the Nespresso AAA Sustainable
Quality Program.

The study demonstrated that the AAA farms surveyed, including
those that have obtained Rainforest Alliance certification, had 22.6%
better social conditions, 52% better environmental conditions and 41%
better economic conditions than non-AAA farms. [1]

The sustainability impacts were illustrated by CRECE, an
independent consulting and research firm based in Colombia, which
conducted an in-depth study to compare progress on farms that are
part of the Nespresso AAA Program and farms that are not part of the
program. CRECE surveyed over 1'000 AAA farmers from across Colombia
to measure the impacts of the program, using multivariate analysis
techniques to build indices for social, environmental and economic
performance.

"The concrete data coming from the field shows the significant
impact that the collaboration between the Rainforest Alliance and
Nespresso is having on the ground in coffee growing communities,"
said Tensie Whelan, president of the Rainforest Alliance. "Over the
ten years that we have worked with Nespresso on the AAA Program, we
have observed significant progress in terms of economic, social and
environmental conditions. The CRECE data presented today introduces a
concrete methodology to verify this progress."

The Nespresso AAA Program, developed in cooperation with the
Rainforest Alliance is a unique approach to securing the highest
quality green coffee required to produce the Grand Cru coffees that
Nespresso consumers have come to expect, improving sustainable
farming practices and enhancing farmer welfare. The AAA Program
combines Nespresso coffee expertise with Rainforest Alliance
sustainable farming expertise, based on internationally recognised
Sustainable Agriculture Network standards. The program is distinctive
from other sustainability schemes in that it adds a quality dimension
to the sustainability principles and also helps farmers improve farm
management and productivity.

"Sustainability is a business imperative for a company like
Nespresso that depends on a natural resource to deliver quality and
consistency to our consumers every day," said Jean-Marc Duvoisin, CEO
of Nespresso. "For us, quality and sustainability are intricately
linked. More sustainable farming increases the ability to produce
consistent quality far into the future. This is something that
benefits farmers, consumers and our business. Our longstanding
collaboration with the Rainforest Alliance has allowed us to develop
a program that has demonstrated a significant impact on the ground
while securing a long term supply of the highest quality coffee for
our company."

The CRECE study demonstrated not only higher absolute values for
AAA farms, but it showed an increasing gap between AAA and non-AAA
farms as well. Between 2009 and 2011 non-AAA farms generally
maintained or demonstrated a decline in their index rating, while AAA
farms demonstrated an increase. Among other things, the study also
detailed higher prices paid to AAA farmers in the form of premiums
and the positive impact that this had on net farmer income, economic
stability and an improvement in the social conditions at the farm
level for AAA farmers. Additionally, farmers participating in the
program reported an increased volume of coffee sold to Nespresso
since they had joined the program.

"We were impressed to observe such significant variances in the
economic, social and environmental performance between AAA and non-
AAA farms across the region," said Carlos Ariel Garcia Romero,
principal researcher for CRECE. "Both the quantitative data we
gathered and the qualitative feedback that we received through our
close interactions with the farmers demonstrate the potential social,
environmental and economic impacts that participation in the program
can have for farmers and their families."

For an executive summary of the CRECE study
www.rainforest-alliance.org/publications/crece-nespresso-report

About the Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality (TM) Program

Launched in 2003, the Nespresso AAA Program was developed in
cooperation with the Rainforest Alliance. The program is a unique
approach that combines a focus on quality and sustainability to drive
improvements in social, environmental and economic conditions for
coffee farmers and farming communities. 2013 marks 10 years of
cooperation between the Rainforest Alliance and Nespresso on the
Program, which has grown exponentially to encompass over 52,000
farmers today.

Through work with partners on the ground, Nespresso is providing
farmers with support, training, financing and technical assistance to
improve sustainability and productivity while maintaining quality.
Nespresso pays premiums for quality, to fund technical assistance
programmes and to incentivise farmers to adopt and implement AAA
required best practices. The company is also co- investing in coffee
growing projects and infrastructure to improve production processes,
increase yields and optimise production costs.

About Nestlé Nespresso SA

Nestlé Nespresso SA is the pioneer and reference for
highest-quality portioned premium coffee. Headquartered in Lausanne,
Switzerland, Nespresso operates in almost 60 countries and has more
than 8000 employees. In 2012, it operated a global retail network of
300 exclusive boutiques. www.nestle-nespresso.com

About the Rainforest Alliance

The Rainforest Alliance works with people whose livelihoods depend
on the land, helping them transform the way they grow food, harvest
wood and host travelers. From large multinational corporations to
small, community-based cooperatives, businesses and consumers
worldwide are involved in the Rainforest Alliance's efforts to bring
responsibly produced goods and services to a global marketplace where
the demand for sustainability is growing steadily. For more
information, visit www.rainforest-alliance.org.

About CRECE

The Centre for Regional Entrepreneurial and Coffee Studies is a
nonprofit organization based in Colombia, with 26 years of experience
in socioeconomic research and consulting. Its work has been oriented
to support the decisions taking processes of Governments and private
companies by designing, collecting, processing and analyzing good
quality information. Its main research topics are Coffee economy,
regional development, education and social studies; and during the
last decade it has been dedicated to M&E of development programs and
measuring of sustainability initiatives on the agricultural sector,
especially the coffee sector. www.crece.org.co

Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130313/601237

[1]
Measurements of social conditions examined working and living
conditions and occupational safety and health, while economic
conditions included net income, farmer yield and perception of
business opportunities and environmental conditions focused on waste
management, soil and water conservation and pesticide use among other
factors.

Pressekontakt:
Damini Sayal Khosla, +41-79-575-3819, dkhosla@webershandwick.com