Global coffee leader Julius Meinl looks ahead to a sustainable future

Global coffee brand Julius Meinl is doubling down on its commitment to creating a sustainable future as it looks ahead to 2022 and beyond.

The premium roaster, which has been at the forefront of Viennese coffee house culture for almost 160 years, has outlined its plans to help combat the climate crisis by making meaningful contributions all along its supply chain, from bean to barista. In its second-ever sustainability report, released this autumn, the company has outlined ambitious new targets to tackle both social responsibility and climate action.

A pledge to ‘grow together’ with everyone from farmer families to the final customer underpins the brand’s approach to sustainability. “As a fifth generation family business, we understand the importance of long-standing partnerships as sustainability and social responsibility is deeply rooted within our DNA,” comments Global Sustainability Manager Marianne Witt.

The brand has developed guidelines for expanding its sustainable green coffee procurement, boosting the proportion of its offering that comes from Fairtrade and UTZ-certified sources. It has also pledged to include data from its tea offering in all future sustainability reporting.

In the HoReCa sector, the brand recently switched its entire ‘coffee to go’ portfolio to cups made of 100% biodegradable materials to tackle waste reduction. It also added reusable cups from Circular & Co, which are fully recyclable and have a lifespan of up to 10 years, to its range.

Waste reduction is also a major focus for the company’s retail portfolio, with 100% of capsules set to be manufactured using biodegradable materials for household composting by next year.

Julius Meinl remains committed to the civic projects it supports. These include its Columbian Heritage project, which supplies technical expertise and financial resources to coffee farmers in the Tolima region of Columbia, helping to increase local production efficiency and income opportunities for farmers and create a long-term sustainable platform that benefits both the industry and the community.

The report demonstrates how the company maintained its focus on long-term sustainability throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, investing in people by hiring new staff, and reinforcing its environmental commitments with the appointment of Global Sustainability Manager Witt. It is also working closely with suppliers to better understand its corporate and environmental footprint and boost sustainability along its supply chain, looking at resources, cultivation and harvesting, transport, production, distribution, and disposal.

“Despite the unprecedented challenges we have all faced over the past couple of years, I am extremely proud of the progress we have made to date regarding our environmental and social responsibilities,” comments Marcel Löffler, Chief Executive Officer, Julius Meinl. “We do not underestimate the work that we still have to do, and Julius Meinl looks forward to working together with our valued customers, suppliers, growers and other key stakeholders to ensure that we can all make a positive difference to the world around us.”

Established in Vienna in 1862, Julius Meinl now counts customers in 70 countries worldwide, and is a leader in the hotel, café and restaurant sector in Austria, Russia, Adriatics, Romania, Dubai and CEE.

To download the Julius Meinl 2021 sustainability report, see juliusmeinl.com/sustainability.