LDF supports future coffee farmers in Indonesia

Run in partnership with Louis Dreyfus Company, and local NGO We The Teachers, Louis Dreyfus Foundation has recently completed a vocational coffee project in West Lampung, a key coffee-growing region in Indonesia. 

The pilot project targeted 90 high school students from SMAN 1 Batu Brak school. The students attended four workshops which taught them about the global and local coffee landscapes and sustainable farming practices, as well as financial and post-harvest management. 

The project curriculum was designed in close collaboration with the students, who completed a survey prior to the training, in order to help experts identify topics of interest for the workshops. This participatory approach contributed to higher students motivation and positive learning outcomes. As a result, more than 40% of students improved their coffee farming knowledge and changed their perceptions of the coffee farming profession, with more of them aspiring to become successful coffee producers. 

“The workshops I attended gave me more confidence to develop the farm and be a more modern coffee farmer,” commented Maryati, a Grade 12 student of Batu Brak school. Her Grade 11 schoolmate Nurhaela added “I want to continue my parents’ work as coffee farmers and develop the farm into a more modern and successful one.” 

The Foundation has been active in the West Lampung region since 2015, and many coffee producers, parents of these students, have received GAP (good agricultural practices) and agroforestry training as part of our Sustainable Coffee Program in Sumatra. Kasim, a farmer beneficiary of this program since 2016, gave the students a guided tour of his coffee farm and shared practices he acquired during the training.

Following the successful pilot, the project team is now discussing opportunities with the West Lampung authorities to extend the training to more farmers and young adults.