IDH The Sustainable Trade Initiative has appointed former Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) CEO Ric Rhinehart as its new Strategy Director of Agri-commodities.
This role will see Rhinehart coordinating IDH’s global activities within the coffee sector, alongside developing and executing IDH strategies within the coffee, tea and cocoa sectors.
This position aims to create transformative action that will positively impact farmers income.
Joining IDH in April 2021, Ric has more than 30 years’ experience within the coffee and tea industry in senior leadership roles across private enterprises and trade groups.
Rhinehart retired as CEO of the SCA at the end of 2019, but continued to engage in issues related to coffee and tea sustainability.
Prior to that, he worked as the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s Executive Director for more than 10 years, was also a founding director of World Coffee Research and Director at the World Coffee Institute. Rhinehart also served in the role as a delegate to the Internaitonal Coffee Organization Private Sector Consultative Board and as Director of the Committee on Sustainability Assessment.
“I am thrilled to be representing IDH in critical collaborative activities with institutional partners like ICO, Global Coffee Platform and Sustainable Coffee Challenge, old friends and colleagues from the private sector, and with new activity centres like the Living Income Community of Practice,” says Rhinehart.
“The energy and capability of the IDH team is inspiring and together we can bring about real, substantive, and lasting change in these sectors.”
As a sustainability focused foundation that works with government, business, and civil society, IDH seeks to create sustainable jobs, markets and industries while having a positive impact on issues such as climate change, deforestation and social inequality.
For more information on IDH please click here.
