Building a Thriving Future for Haitian Coffee

USAID helps revive Haitian coffee production, expanding access to local and international markets

A Haitian coffee farmer loads his harvest into a bag. / PISA

In the southeast of Haiti, high up in the city of Jacmel, lies the commune of Thiotte. The local economy is based on coffee production, an integral part of the lives of thousands of families who live there.

Bichard, a young man from the area, learned about the production of this rich coffee from his uncle, and is determined to keep the tradition alive.

Driven by his deeply rooted passion for coffee production, 10 years ago, Bichard embarked on his personal agricultural journey. The ongoing social and economic crises in Haiti added to the many obstacles he had to face on a daily basis. The lack of training and financial assistance were keeping him away from his end goal — bringing his darkly colored liquid to the local markets.

Left to right: Bichard is sowing coffee seeds in one of PISA’s nurseries, taking care of one of the plants on his coffee plantation in the South East department of Haiti, and showing the coffee beans his plants have produced. / PISA

“At one point, I told myself that I was working in vain. I couldn’t keep this light of hope, this passion within me alive because of all the challenges I was facing,” said Bichard.

USAID is prioritizing locally-led development in Haiti by supporting people partnering with local organizations to capitalize on local contexts and dynamics — and ensure that positive outcomes can be sustained by local people, for local people. In collaboration with Produits des Îles S.A. (PISA), a local company that focuses on the development and marketing of affordable and quality products, USAID works with local farmers to bring their products to both Haitian and international markets. PISA is one of Haiti’s largest coffee roasters.

USAID, through the Kafe Tyòt se Richès (KTSR) project, is assisting PISA to provide training to farmers that enables them to produce, process, and accelerate coffee as a crop capable of generating increased export revenues, increasing rural employment, and building resilient communities.

This approach strengthens collaboration between growers and cooperatives. It also encourages youth, such as Bichard, to get involved in the coffee value chain, and promotes increased production and better quality coffee that is more commercially viable and able to meet local and export market demand. It’s just as the name Kafe Tyòt se Richès, which translates to “Thiotte’s coffee is wealth,” suggests.

A group of coffee producers hand-weeding their nursery. / PISA

As an active participant of Kafe Tyòt se Richès, Bichard now has access to high-quality seedlings and fertilizing inputs, and receives training and guidance from KTSR agronomists. Bichard has received 1,000 Catimor coffee seedlings for the first season of the project, allowing him to expand his cultivable area.

“When I heard that the KTSR project would be assisting farmers in my community, it was as if a heavy weight was lifted off my back. Relief, that’s what I felt that day,” said Bichard.

Honoring his uncle’s memory, who was a supplier for PISA, he takes pride in contributing to PISA’s mission and fostering a lasting relationship with the company.

Since the beginning of KTSR in 2022, the project has distributed 108,000 coffee seedlings to 100 coffee producers in Thiotte. In addition to coffee, Bichard has expanded his land to cultivate other crops such as bananas, yams, passion fruit, and forest trees.

KTSR is partnering with a network of 500 coffee producers like Bichard on about 600 hectares of land to increase crop productivity, with a goal of doubling coffee yields, and expanding access to higher-priced export and local markets.

USAID’s partner is working in Haiti with a network of 500 coffee producers to increase crop productivity, with a goal of doubling coffee yields, and expanding access to higher-priced export and local markets. / PISA

The coffee produced will be sold in supermarkets in Haiti and eventually, with the support of PISA, to coffee companies on the international market.

Bichard added: “It’s like the community is breathing fresh air now. The future is brighter. Our most valuable crop is being kept alive, which will allow us to meet our families’ needs with the incomes it generates.”

This collective dedication to sustainability, diversity, and innovation among coffee producers promises to build a thriving and lasting heritage for generations ahead. KTSR aims to revitalize the Thiotte coffee sector to make it profitable and financially and environmentally sustainable, and to contribute to resilience, stability, and inclusive growth within the coffee farmers’ community.

About the Author

Capharnamie Jean-Louis is the Deputy Development Outreach and Communications Officer Specialist USAID’s Mission in Haiti.