Julius Meinl
News
100% Responsibly Selected Coffee: We Did It!
Vienna, 18 February 2025
Good news tastes even better with coffee. We are proud to share that Julius Meinl has now reached 100% ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’ for our products roasted in our two production plants in Vienna and Vicenza. This achievement did not happen overnight. It is the result of long-term partnerships, shared commitment, and a clear idea of what responsible coffee sourcing should mean in practice.
A big thank you to our green coffee suppliers for joining the effort that allowed us to achieve this goal by the end of 2025 and ensuring that we can maintain this standard in future!
So, what does ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’ mean?
With so many different and, oftentimes, non-transparent claims around sustainability, you may wonder what we mean when we say ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’. So, let’s clarify:
For us at Julius Meinl, ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’ means that every green coffee bean we source globally and roast in Vienna and Vicenza meets global sustainability criteria recognised across the coffee sector.
As members of the Global Coffee Platform (GCP) – a globally recognised multi-stakeholder organisation that brings the coffee sector together to drive collective action – Julius Meinl follows the criteria defined in the Coffee Sustainability Reference Code (Coffee SR Code). Developed by GCP, the code provides a shared framework for understanding and advancing sustainability across the coffee sector.
Instead of many different definitions, the Coffee SR Code sets one shared baseline for sustainability in coffee production. It looks at coffee farming as a whole and is built around three dimensions with twelve principles and underlying practices and expected results:
- Economic: promoting good farm management and access to agricultural knowledge to strengthen farmers’ businesses.
- Social: respecting human rights, including the protection of children, safe and fair working conditions, and positive contributions to local communities.
- Environmental: safeguarding nature through biodiversity protection, responsible use of water and resources, pollution prevention and climate-related practices.
Together, these twelve principles form the foundation of what ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’ means to us.
Committing to continuous improvement
At the heart of the Coffee SR Code is a commitment to continuous improvement. Why? Because even when our green coffee suppliers work closely with farmers to fulfil the principles defined in the Coffee SR Code, challenges can still arise. Pretending that everything always goes perfectly would be unrealistic, and ultimately harmful. Ignoring social, economic or environmental problems on farms would prevent farmers from getting the support they need and could negatively impact both people and the planet.
That’s why we, as Julius Meinl, regularly assess farms in our supply chains to understand where progress is being made and where challenges remain. These assessments are carried out by Enveritas, a non-profit organisation. Each year, all supply chains and farms that are not already covered by an external third-party assessment (e.g. Fairtrade) are included in Enveritas assessments, with different sourcing origins assessed annually to ensure regularly updated reference values. Enveritas provides us with detailed reports on the realities farmers face, which we share and discuss with our suppliers. Together, we work to address challenges, and if concerns arise, we proactively engage with suppliers to resolve them.
Why reaching 100% matters
By reaching 100% ‘Responsibly Selected Coffee’ in our own production, sustainability is no longer a separate initiative or only a part of a specific product line, but rather what Julius Meinl is committed to at its core.
Thanks to GCP’s approach, credible sustainability programmes of our green coffee suppliers – as well as third-party certifications such as Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance that were assessed under the GCP’s Equivalence Mechanism and are align with the Coffee SR Code – can be recognised as equivalent. This helps reduce complexity for everyone involved. It also allows impact to grow faster, with the focus staying where it belongs: on real change on farms.
For farmers, this contributes to improved working conditions, more sustainable farm practices that improve efficiency and yield, and greater resilience for the future.
For our customers, it means confidence and an image boost. Every cup of Julius Meinl coffee roasted in Vienna and Vicenza, served to our end consumers, now comes with the reassurance that it has been sourced with a strong commitment to care for people, communities, and the environment.