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NAIROBI -(Dow Jones)- Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) is spending more than $6 million in aid projects in East Africa in a move to double its purchase of fine coffee from the region by 2009.
The world's largest coffee chain bought 360,000metric tons of coffee last year, of which only 6% came from East Africa, according to a company spokesman Friday, adding that the company's aim was to increase this proportion to 12%.
Director of Communications for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Hans Van Bochove, told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Amsterdam that Starbucks is helping farmers in East Africa to improve their coffee quality and raise their earnings.
As a result "the quality is improving, farmers are increasing yields of good quality coffee beans," said Van Bochove.
Coffee output from the region, particularly in Kenya, has been on the decline due to low coffee prices caused by a glut in the global market.
NAIROBI -(Dow Jones)- Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) is spending more than $6 million in aid projects in East Africa in a move to double its purchase of fine coffee from the region by 2009.
The world's largest coffee chain bought 360,000metric tons of coffee last year, of which only 6% came from East Africa, according to a company spokesman Friday, adding that the company's aim was to increase this proportion to 12%.
Director of Communications for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Hans Van Bochove, told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Amsterdam that Starbucks is helping farmers in East Africa to improve their coffee quality and raise their earnings.
As a result "the quality is improving, farmers are increasing yields of good quality coffee beans," said Van Bochove.
Coffee output from the region, particularly in Kenya, has been on the decline due to low coffee prices caused by a glut in the global market.