A lot can happen over coffee: CSR at CCD

Everybody knows about the CSR initiatives at Starbucks. But there are so many other coffee chains doing a great work with CSR that aren’t talked about so much. I am a self-confessed cafe nut and I would not have finished any dissertation I have ever written without coffee and without cafes. One of the biggest, most rapidly expanding coffee chains in India is Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) which was originally started in Bangalore.

Cafe Coffee Day sources coffee from 5,000 acres (2,023 ha) of sustainably managed coffee estates, the second largest in Asia, that is owned by a sister concern and from 11,000 small growers. It is one of India’s leading coffee exporters, with clients across the USA, Middle East, Europe and Japan. Some of the CSR initiatives they employ at the estate level include conversion of the outer skin of the coffee cherry into manure, rainwater harvesting for irrigation, ETP (Effluent treatment plant) controls pollution during wet processing. In addition to this all estates are UTZ Kapeh certified for sustainable agricultural practices which means that coffee is grown with least impact to surrounding forests and wildlife. There are no mechanised dryer – all coffee is naturally sundried and they employ integrated pest management to reduce pesticide usage. 

CCD owns about a 1000 cafes all over India and are now rapidly expanding in the Middle-East and Austria. So far they have been focusing on energy conservation by using LED bulbs instead of CFL bulbs and also using LED for their signs. They also employ 50 speech and hearing impaired people at various outlets as part of their regular staff as a move towards equal employment. They are called ‘Silent Brew-masters’ and CCD has tied up with NGO Enable India to increase the number of such differently-abled employees.

Their biggest CSR initiative is the SVGH Vocational Training College which was established in April 2005 in Chikmaglur, Karnataka. It has the aim of bridging the gap between the urban and the rural youth by giving opportunities for the economically underprivileged ones for learning, training and ensuring them due placements. It has the vision to create an environment where students are motivated to find their purpose and realize their full potential. The college trains and supports rural youth to be independent, responsible and adaptable. It provides them an opportunity for personal and professional development thereby equipping them with skills to handle the rapidly changing environment.

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