ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Keita Ishii, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that it will support the development of the next generation of people in the coffee bean producing areas of Ethiopia together with its subsidiary FamilyMart (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Kensuke Hosomi, Representative Director and President; hereinafter “FamilyMart”).

Currently, ITOCHU imports coffee beans from more than 20 countries. Ethiopia, one of these exporting countries, is the world's fifth-largest coffee bean producing county in terms of production, producing close to 450,000 tons of coffee beans annually. With their characteristic scent, Ethiopian coffee beans have been popular for a long time in Japan, where they are called mocha coffee beans.
On the other hand, the coffee producing areas are facing the coffee issue in 2050 (the production of coffee arabica*¹ beans may drop to 50% of the current yield as demand increases steadily, leading to an insufficient supply). This is due to climate change in the coffee producing areas, falling production due to insect and disease damage, and a decrease in the number of producers due to economic grievances. It is necessary to improve the educational environment to provide adequate agricultural knowledge as one measure to break this vicious spiral and realize sustainable coffee bean production.

Together with FamilyMart, ITOCHU will donate an amount of money to Ethiopia to help the country improve its educational environment based on its sales of Mocha Blend and Iced Mocha Blend coffee at FAMIMA CAFÉ stores from Tuesday, April 2, 2024 to Monday, June 3, 2024. In cooperation with the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) led by the Embassy of Japan in Ethiopia, ITOCHU and FamilyMart will donate one yen per item purchased. The donated money will go to Berera Junior High and High Schools for purposes such as building lavatories and purchasing teaching materials aimed at preserving the history and culture of coffee. Local schools do not have sufficient lavatory equipment, which causes a lack of sanitation. This issue affects the education rate of women because many of them cannot attend school due to the high risk of infection and the lack of privacy. The goal of the donation is to improve the level of the education and the hygienic environment in Ethiopia through the construction of lavatories and the purchase and distribution of teaching materials.

In the procurement of coffee beans, ITOCHU's goal is to enhance our contribution to and engagement with the SDGs through its business activities, having established an independent procurement policy that includes better traceability, environmentally friendly procurement and the prohibition of child labor and forced labor. Through this initiative, ITOCHU and FamilyMart will contribute to the improvement of education and the hygienic environment in Ethiopia and strengthen the responses to the coffee issue in 2050.
Additionally, ITOCHU will continue to ensure the safety and security of the sustainable supply of coffee beans, becoming involved in local activities for mobile hospitals and the education of children by Unex (Guatemala), S.A., its subsidiary in Guatemala, supporting coffee-producing areas and farmers, and cooperating*² with Farmer Connect, a coffee traceability platform.

[Product name] Mocha Blend M
[Price]195 yen (210 yen including tax)
[Launch area] Nationwide (excluding Okinawa Prefecture)
*S size is 130 yen (140 yen including tax)

[Product name] Iced Mocha Blend
[Price] 149 yen (160 yen including tax)
[Launch area] Nationwide (excluding Okinawa Prefecture)