Starbucks opened its first farmer support centre San José, Costa Rica in 2004 just as it was launching its groundbreaking C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices verification program. Working one-on-one with farmers in the field, supporting coops and suppliers, Starbucks agronomists build upon traditional growing methods to help farmers improve both the quality and profitability of their crops.

Today’s farmers are facing constant challenges to their long-term future. Starbucks currently operates nine farmer support centres and one satellite agronomy office in coffee-producing countries around the world, providing farmers with free access to the latest findings of Starbucks agronomists, including new varietals of disease-resistant trees and advanced soil management techniques. Its original Costa Rica agronomy office has relocated from an office building in downtown San José to the Hacienda Alsacia farm on the slopes of the Poas Volcano, the company’s global agronomy research and development center.

Starbucks Farmer Support Centres

Starbucks opened its tenth Farmer Support Centre in Brazil in August 2021. To date, Starbucks has trained more than 200,000 farmers providing free access to education and resources through its Farmer Support Centres. Here are the farmer support centres Starbucks and the dates opened.

San José, Costa Rica: 2004 (relocated to Hacienda Alsacia in 2016)
Guatemala City, Guatemala (Satellite): 2006
Kigali, Rwanda: 2009
Mbeya, Tanzania: 2011
Manizales, Colombia: 2012
Yunnan, China: 2012
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: 2014
North Sumatra, Indonesia: 2015
Chiapas, Mexico: 2016
Varginha, Brazil: 2021