Case Study

Origin Issue Assessment: Vietnam Coffee

Origin Issue Assessments (OIAs) were compiled by the Rainforest Alliance as part of the JDE Common Grounds Program. According to the 2020 Vietnam OIA, the following are key risks in the Vietnamese coffee sector: buffer zones, banned pesticides, soil fertility management, and harvest and post-harvest practices.

In Vietnam, the excessive use of agrochemicals combined with poor attention paid to riparian zones has led to widespread pollution of natural systems and buffer zones. As such, it is common practice for coffee farmers to uniformly spray pesticides, including highly hazardous toxins, when pests are found on trees. Moreover, declining soil fertility and erosion is witnessed because of higher-than-recommended fertilizer use and incorrect soil management. The Vietnamese export market is catered toward the mainstream market, with a focus on productivity rather than quality harvesting and processing practices.