Lavazza strikes deal to bring Cuban coffee to the UK market for the first time

Cuba conjures up images of big cigars, classic American cars, revolution, rum and Fidel Castro. What the Caribbean island is less known for is coffee. Coffee farming, once one of the world's largest producers, has collapsed since US President John F. Kennedy imposed an economic embargo on Castro's pro-Soviet regime in early 1962 – but there is hope for a revival.

Britain's many morning coffee lovers will soon have the chance to judge for themselves whether the Cuban product still has the famous chocolate and nutty flavors, complemented by tobacco undertones, that gave it a world-class reputation before the embargo.

Italian coffee giant Lavazza has just struck a deal with Sainsbury's and Waitrose to bring Cuban coffee to the UK market for the first time. It will be available under the Tierra label.

It is part of a broader plan to revive Cuba's coffee sector, which has all but disappeared under the embargo. At its peak in the 1950s it produced 50,000 tons per year. The latest annual production total is only 8,000 tons.

Tough US sanctions continue to take a huge toll on all aspects of Cuba's economic life, turning it into a Cold War relic seemingly frozen in time.

Cuba imports most of the food and fuel the country consumes. Power outages are common as the cash-strapped economy takes a nosedive. Inflation is as high as 45 percent and the currency is in free fall.

Since the pandemic, tourists have failed to return in large numbers, stripping Cuba of its foreign currency and purchasing power.

But reviving the coffee industry would be an important step for Cuba, as coffee is one of the most traded commodities in the world.

The revival is taking place in the Sierra Maestra Mountains in eastern Cuba. Steeped in history, Castro and his revolutionaries launched a series of guerrilla attacks on the country's government from this densely forested area.

Military dictator Fulgencio Batista was finally overthrown in 1959.

With US sanctions making it difficult for companies to operate there, Lavazza has been working in this region through its charitable foundation for several years to reinvigorate the industry.

The Cuban government's substantial subsidies to plant coffee in the forests also strengthen the efforts. Lavazza has been busy teaching farming techniques and marketing knowledge to about 170 farmers in the area in a campaign to revive the coffee growing industry.

“The project is about creating the environment in which Cuban coffee can be sold,” said Veronica Rossi, senior sustainability manager at the foundation. Rafael Antonio Infante, also known as 'Tony', is one of the farmers working with Lavazza.

Tony used to raise cattle, but has dedicated a third of his 80-acre farm to growing organic, hand-picked coffee. And he wants to expand. Why?

“Because the market is safe – and coffee is more profitable than cows,” he laughs.

Lavazza's foundation – which works in 20 countries on three continents to improve coffee crop yields – has taken on a leading role after partnering with Oxfam in Cuba in 2018.

Revival: Farmer Tony Infante, right, switches from cattle to coffee

Oxfam later closed all its Caribbean offices as part of a cost-cutting effort after donations dried up during the pandemic, leaving the foundation to deal directly with the Cuban government.

“This is the first time we have partnered with a government and turned it into a joint venture,” Rossi explains. “It's a very good experiment for us.”

All profits made from exporting Cuban coffee will be reinvested in the 20-year project, she added.

Coffee's comeback in Cuba will take time and scale-up will be hampered as long as sanctions persist. Just last month, Britain was among 187 countries to back a United Nations resolution to lift the blockade on Cuba. But it remains in place after the US vetoed the measure, which continues to label Cuba as a terrorist state.

Perhaps Vietnam – another centralized one-party communist country – offers an example. In just four decades, it has gone from nowhere to become the world's second largest coffee producer.

The difference is that Vietnam has cleared its forests to make way for coffee plantations.

Cuba has taken the opposite path and has reforested extensively. That, and the fact that the country has no fertilizers due to the blockade, strengthens Cuba's reputation for sustainable 'green' coffee.

The use of blockchain technology – where each coffee bag has its own code that cannot be changed – improves certification.

Robeldi Nicot Terrero, president of Agroforestal, the state-owned environmental management company, emphasizes that Cuba can compete again on the world stage.

“Cuban coffee is the best,” he says. 'It's good, honest and clean.'