SHERBROOKE, Que. — To reduce its carbon footprint and promote sustainable practices throughout its supply chain, Café William’s first coffee cargo sailboat set sail from the port of Santa Marta in Colombia on December 18, bound for North America. During its 20-day voyage, the cargo sailboat carried 72,000 kilos of coffee beans on the wind, in a constant effort to run on clean energy.
Additionally, the certified organic beans used by Café William come from the ANEI coffee cooperative on the mountain slopes of the Sierra Nevada in northern Colombia. According to Café William’s projections, the company could see a reduction of around one tonne of shipping-related CO2 per container. The company hopes to increase its cargo sailboat shipping capacity to 100 per cent of the volume imported for Café William in the long term.
“It’s a commitment to sustainable transport, but also to setting a precedent for other players in the sector,” says Serge Picard, owner of Café William. “It was vital for us to find an alternative method of transporting coffee, which largely depends on fossil-fuel cargo ships. With a first voyage as a proof of concept for the cargo sailboat, this is just the beginning of plans to supply zero-emission coffee.”
“The partnership established between the ANEI association and Café William is a perfect example of what fair trade is all about: weaving a link from farmers to consumers to put trade back at the service of people, not the other way around. For the Fairtrade Canada team, it’s a privilege to support the implementation of Café William’s visionary dream,” says Julie Francoeur, CEO of Fairtrade Canada.
“We have a unique opportunity to share with Quebecers not only the exhilarating adventure of our first coffee voyage by cargo sailboat but also the rich history of the members of the aboriginal community grouped under the ANEI cooperative,” says Rachel Ladouceur, senior Marketing manager at Café William. “For them, commitment to the planet, mother earth and the principles of respect for the land go far beyond conventional coffee production and established commercial standards. They’re genuinely rooted in a philosophy of life that connects all humans. Their coffee serves as a vehicle to convey their vision of harmony with nature. So, by importing coffee from farms in the Sierra Nevada mountains to Canada, we unite in a shared dream to ‘cool’ the earth.”
