What is Value Chain Investment at Taylors?

Taylors Sourcing Approach (TSA) was started in 2013, with the goal of placing quality, sustainability and relationships at the heart of how we operate. 

We work hard to build strong relationships with tea and coffee suppliers by establishing long term contracts with them, which typically run for three years minimum. This creates security and reassurance which allows suppliers to plan for the future and leads to a stable and dependable supply of tea and coffee for our customers.

TSA aspires to work collaboratively with our suppliers to find ways in which we can address the social and environmental challenges they face day to day. To read more on TSA, click here.

VCI’s at origin

‘Value Chain Investments’ is the term we use to describe the projects we support with the suppliers we work with and these are set up in two ways, directly with our suppliers by funding projects designed in collaboration with them or investing indirectly by funding larger scale projects with NGOs and industry partners such as the Ethical Tea Partnership or World Coffee Research. 

This allows us to operate projects on a larger scale as well as supporting those important, smaller scale community-based projects. The length of these projects varies dependent on need and scope, some may only need to run for a year to achieve the KPI’s put in place, others require 3 – 5 years of planning, investment and scope to see success.

We recognise that to have an extensive and enduring impact, it is essential to work closely with others and be part of the conversation for greater change. We hold board positions at of some of the organisations in our industry in order to contribute to change at higher levels. Keith our Supply Director sits on the board of World Coffee Research (WCR), who collaborate with farmers and industry partners on their research, which is essential as coffee is susceptible to disease which can be detrimental for the whole farm and industry and crucial for the adaption to climate change.

A key part of our sourcing approach are our projects, designed in partnership with our suppliers. These are investments we make back into our supply chain to directly support the tea and coffee farmers we source from. This work requires strong relationships with our suppliers to understand their needs and to communicate with them to address some of the systemic issues they face every day. For example, in 2017 Taylors invested £20,000 into a project which was put forward by one of the coffee suppliers we work with in Rwanda. The project involved building a pipeline to bring safe water closer to the communities to reduce daily commutes and to improve the quality of the natural water sources by installing a recirculation system. This project directly benefitted over 3115 farmers and their families by reducing the water used in coffee processing and consequently reduced wastewater containing any organic pollutants, decreasing the amount of pollution reaching the river.

Taylors have been implementing VCIs since 2012 to support our sourcing approach goals. In 2021 we invested £1.02 million into 30 VCI projects, in 13 countries. The work varied from investing in tree planting and climate smart agriculture, to installing potable water systems; supporting education and gender programmes to empower women in their communities, along with projects to improve nutrition, health, and sanitation and provide additional income opportunities.

Here are some examples of VCI investments we made in 2021: 

· Trees – we invested £215,000 into tree planting in Kenya and the UK, improving livelihoods and decreasing carbon dioxide, planting up to 3 million trees

· Water - £121,000 was invested in potable water systems in Kenya and Uganda. These help to provide access to fresh, clean drinking water for over 75,000 people

· Nutrition - 779 food baskets were given to the families and communities surrounding BSC in Brazil

· Women & Children — £280,000 was funded in gender programmes towards women’s empowerment and safety in Kenya and Malawi

· Farmers & Farming – improved farm productivity for 15,00 farmers — increasing yields, improving quality and raising incomes

· Sanitation – sanitary kits and vitamins & minerals were given to 659 cooperative members and their families in Rwanda

· Education - £29,500 increasing education and training opportunities for over 25,000 farmers and their families

Value Chain Investment is a hugely important part of Taylors Sourcing Approach. It is a unique way of supporting suppliers through strong relationships and working with them to address some of the fundamental issues they face day to day that threaten the security of tea and coffee and their livelihoods. It is a fundamental priority for us to improve the livelihoods of the suppliers we buy from along with their communities in order to protect people and our planet for future generations. 

We want to shine a light on these projects, to show you the real depth and value of our sourcing approach and the impact this has on the people we work with, so we will be keeping you up to date with our latest investments and you can read more about these projects right here on the hub.