Orang Utan Coffee Project

Due to deforestation within tropical rainforests in the Gayo Highland region of Sumatra from aggressive agricultural cultivation, groups like The Orang Utan Coffee project have formed to help create and sponsor environmental and ecologically friendly coffee plantations to ensure coffee production does not impact the wildlife around it. 

The Orang Utan project accomplishes their goals by taking profits from the sale of coffee in the region and investing it into sustainable farming practices that ensure traceability and sustainability for the long-term growth of coffee within the Gayo region.

The Gayo Highland produces some of the finest arabica coffee at its growing altitude, while bordering the protected Leuser Ecosystem, which contains one of the last refuges of sumatran endemic animals, such as the rhino, elephant, tiger, and, of course, the orangutan, all of which are threatened with extinction. Much of the efforts of the Orang Utan Coffee project goes to ensuring farmers can still produce some of the greatest arabica green coffee within the region and worldwide, while also making sure the impact of its production does not harm the livelihood of all the endangered wildlife. In doing so, farmers are paid a premium by adhering to sustainable  agriculture methods that conserves the surrounding environment, while also having the added benefit of producing a delicious cup of coffee.

Part of the effort and motivation to produce conservationally sound coffee comes from the desire to steer farmers away from invasive, destructive palm oil agriculture, which accounts for decimating around 88 football fields worth of tropical rainforest each year, threatening the existence of many endangered lives, as well as local farmers' livelihood and homes.

Rather than placing emphasis on maximizing profit, the Orang Utan Coffee project looks forward to protecting the environment in which the coffee is grown, while ensuring the rich ecosystem prospers for years to come. The conservationist efforts of Orang Utan have come from years of partnering with family-run coffee farms all throughout Gayo, educating and empowering farmers to build upon their traditional knowledge to grow

sustainable, produce great tasting arabica coffee, and provide a livelihood for their communities and environment alike.

We here at Volcanica Coffee are proud to partner with Orang Utan Coffee project by featuring our Sumatra Gayo coffee with notes of cacao nibs and caramel, along with the satisfaction of knowing the coffee was grown using sustainable agricultural processes that make it all the more satisfying to drink in the morning. By supporting the Orang Utan produced coffee, we grow the influence of the organization that continuously strives to inform, educate, and grow conservationist-minded coffee for years to come, as well as rescuing more and more orangutans each year, which has already rescued over 200 orangutans and counting.