Leading Brazilian producer and exporter of specialty coffees, Ipanema Coffees, a is celebrating a record of 2 million 60-kilogram bags exported in 26 years directly from their farms to clients worldwide. Ipanema is the owner of three farms with 14 million trees planted and milling facilities located in the south of Minas Gerais state. This is the first time in Brazil that such a volume is reached, taking into account that these are exports with origin, direct from the farm. Most of Brazilian coffee exports consist of coffees to be used in blends of mass consumption “This achievement was made possible by the strong relationship with clients, the daily efforts of our employees in the fields, milling and offices, and continuous investment in innovation, research and sustainability”, says Washington Rodrigues, Ipanema Coffees CEO.
Ipanema became an exporter of specialty coffees in 1991, after a change in domestic regulation of coffee trading that opened the international markets to Brazilian producers. Before that the governmental control granted limited export licenses to a small number of exporters. This policy lasted for 30 years and led coffee producers to focus just on quantity, since all coffee qualities were paid by the same price and sold under labels as “Santos 4”.
After 1990, when more liberal governmental policies were adopted and coffee producers allowed to export directly, Ipanema Coffees quickly seized the opportunity to expand its activities beyond the country borders and became a pioneer in direct exports. Since 1991, the company has built strong relationships with clients in 28 countries.