Koperasi Baithul Qiradh Baburrayyan (KBQB)

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Koperasi Baithul Qiradh Baburrayyan (KBQB)

Product: Coffee

FLO ID: 5146

Country: Indonesia

Individual members 7,824

Year Fairtrade Certified: 2007

Organisation Type: Smallholder

Organisation Details

Koperasi Baithul Qiradh Baburrayyan (KBQB) is a Fairtrade certified producer group located across the Aceh Tengah and Bener Meriah districts in western Sumatra. The subtropical Sumatran highlands host ideal conditions for coffee production. The area is known for its speciality ‘Gayo coffee’. The cooperative is placed at an altitude of 1,000 – 2,500m.

The KBQB was first founded as a savings and credit cooperative. The members had difficult lives, suffering from the armed conflict in the region and the impact of the devastating Tsunami in 2004. In 2006, the members emerged from this period with an entrepreneurial spirit. The cooperative was supported by the USAID Enterprise Development and Employment Generation Project and began producing coffee for export. Today, they are well-established as one of the leading cooperatives in the country.

The cooperative produces Arabica, Catimor coffee for export. The coffee is Semi-washed, grades 15 available, typically sweet and earthy.

Fairtrade Certification

In 2007, the cooperative joined Fairtrade to help local farmers develop economic stability.

Fairtrade Benefits/ Premium

The Fairtrade Premium has gone towards multiple social investments, including scholarships for children of the members, programmes on arts, and financial assistance in the eventuality of a death in the family. There is also a social fund for natural disasters.

Quality & productivity

KBQB invests strongly in training farmers in improvement of quality and the productivity of their coffee. They have invested in hulling machinery and other modern equipment to update their processes.

Board members at a training workshop

Environment

KBQB have used the Fairtrade Premium Funds to improve the variety of shade trees on farmers. They run various trainings and provide materials for environmental awareness. The cooperative distributes tools to farmers such as the ‘weed whacker’, which can be used instead of herbicides. The cooperative is 100% organic and uses agro-forestry techniques.