Key Takeaways
- JDE Peet's N.V., now part of Keurig Dr Pepper, launched the Coffee Canopy Partnership with seven leading coffee companies to create the world's first comprehensive map of global coffee production.
- The initiative uses Airbus's advanced satellite technology with up to 30cm resolution imagery combined with artificial intelligence to identify deforestation risks and map coffee farms.
- The East Africa pilot phase covers Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda, mapping 1.2 million square kilometers of coffee landscapes with completion expected by June 2026.
- The Partnership is supported by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and endorsed by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to address EU Deforestation Regulation compliance challenges.
- The initiative aims to achieve worldwide coverage of all coffee-growing regions in 2027 through expanded industry and institutional co-investment following the pilot's success.
JDE Peet's N.V. Addresses Coffee Industry Deforestation Challenge
The Coffee Canopy Partnership, initiated by JDE Peet's N.V., launched to advance identification and remediation of coffee-related deforestation across global supply chains. The collaboration includes major industry players: JDE Peet's, Louis Dreyfus Company, Sucden, Neumann Kaffee Gruppe, Touton, Sucafina, and Tchibo.
“A sustainable coffee industry is one in which coffee production no longer contributes to forest loss. To help advance this vision, we are launching the Coffee Canopy Partnership. The Partnership is designed to move beyond fragmented, company-led deforestation initiatives by fostering collaboration at a landscape scale,” said Laurent Sagarra, VP Engagement at JDE Peet's.
Advanced Satellite Technology Powers Mapping Initiative
Airbus Defence and Space provides sophisticated very high-resolution Pléiades and Pléiades Neo satellite imagery combined with AI-powered analysis to create definitive datasets. The Partnership will establish a 2020-2021 baseline map showing true coffee cultivation extent and a 2024-2025 updated map to identify potential new production areas and forest changes.
“Leveraging our very high-resolution Pléiades and Pléiades Neo satellite imagery combined with advanced AI capabilities, Airbus helps identify deforestation risk and protect our world's forests, while simultaneously empowering food producers and smallholder farmers with the transparency and reliable data needed to strengthen their resilience,” said Eric Even, Head of Space Digital at Airbus Defence and Space.
Addressing EU Deforestation Regulation Compliance
The initiative directly responds to the EU Deforestation Regulation, which prohibits coffee grown on land classified as forest after December 2020 from entering EU markets. Historical lack of precise mapping data has frequently resulted in shade-grown and agroforestry coffee systems being misidentified as natural forest, potentially excluding millions of smallholder farmers despite sustainable practices. The Partnership's transparent, openly accessible geospatial platform will enable farmers, governments, and industry stakeholders to access reliable data for sustainability planning and forest protection.
