NESPRESSO WILL INVEST 20 MILLION USD IN DRC TO SUPPORT THE COFFEE GROWING COMMUNITY AND THE REVIVAL OF THE SPECIALTY COFFEE

Vevey, Switzerland (ots/PRNewswire) - Focusing on an increased sourcing of
high-quality coffee, as well as implementing regenerative practices, gender
equality programs and projects to increase access to healthcare and clean water
.

Nespresso aims to continue to support the local community and economy by
investing 20 million USD spent across coffee purchases, price premiums and
technical assistance, by 2026 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), helping
to give coffee farmers access to the global markets. The ambition is also to
help support fund raising of an additional 20 million USD to support the coffee
growing communities in Kivu. This initiative is part of the unique Nespresso
Reviving Origins program, founded 10 years ago, aiming to restore coffee
agriculture in regions where it is under threat.

In 1980, coffee was the second most important export for DRC and ranked among
the world's finest but declined in the early 2000s due to years of instability
that had a devastating impact on the industry.

Since the launch of the Nespresso Reviving Origins program in DRC in 2020 it has
enabled the production of the exquisite coffees from the Lake Kivu region, where
the once-thriving coffee farming community has been, and still is, devastated by
decades of political and economic instability, that continue to rise today.

Guillaume Le Cunff, CEO Nespresso says, "Kivu has the potential to be among the
world's great coffee regions but has faced extremely challenging conditions in
recent years. Through our Reviving Origins program, we work closely with
Congolese farmers, and we have joined forces with partners including, Eastern
Congo Initiative (ECI)/ASILI, TechnoServe, the U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID), The Global Environment Facility (GEF), Clarmondial,
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and Virunga Coffee to
restore and revitalize Kivu as a leading source of high-quality, exceptional
Arabica coffee. In the context of escalating violence in eastern DRC where
access to water is becoming insufficient, water-borne illnesses have resurfaced,
and daily life is under significant upheaval, it is even more critical to help
build community resilience, access to health care and clean water as well as
support farmer livelihoods by continuing to give them access to the global
market and empowering them in their agricultural transition."

With the continued investment of 20 million USD in the region, as well as with
the ambition to support to raise funds of another 20 million USD, Nespresso aims
to continue the work to back the revival of the DRC coffee sector.

"Nespresso's deep commitment to Kivu is creating lasting change in communities