Nestle to build a sustainable coffee factory in Vietnam

Global food giant, Nestle announced that it is building a new coffee factory which would source 30,000 tonnes of beans from 16,000 local farmers.

The company says it will invest USD270 million in the factory which will be based in the Dong Nai region. It will produce coffee for its Nescafé brand, which will be sold both in the local market and for export.

Nestlé CEO Paul Bulcke, was quoted in Supply Management, "This investment is fully aligned with the global Nescafé Plan, launched just a year ago, which brings our commitment to support responsible coffee farming, production and consumption together."

The Vietnam deal is part of a CHF500 million (USD652 million) program to   increase the sustainability of the Nescafé supply chain by 2020. Two of the plan's key objectives are to increase the amount of produce the company buys directly from local farmers and improve farming methods.

The company said expansion into Asia was one of the key areas driving company growth. Part of this was a push to broaden the distribution chain to enable it to break into rural areas.

This will be the company's fifth factory in Vietnam, but the first to produce coffee. It will start to produce coffee in 2013 when the factory is operational.