Through this policy we support and work closely with a number of UK based and overseas charities and we have now extended this further with our new link to the Born Free Foundation.
We are launching a new espresso blend called Born Free which Virginia McKenna will be roasting at the Coffee Real roastery on the 17th April. This blend will be sold online to independent retail shops and to selected cafés, hotels and restaurants, of which 15% of sales revenue will be donated directly to the foundation.
The Blend will be made from four key countries where we buy coffee and where the Born Free Foundation has wildlife projects. These areas are India, Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia.
Where will the money we raise go?
In India - Born Free manage a sanctuary for rescued tigers in Bannerghatta National Park in Southern India. Tragically, the conditions and events the tigers have suffered pre-rescue, have left them unsuitable for release into the wild, so this sanctuary provides areas that are enclosed or 'kraaled' offering each tiger a hectare of natural forest habitat and access to water in which they typically love to relax.
In Kenya - one of the major threats to lion populations is predation of livestock. When lions attack and kill livestock, the pastoralist community often retaliate by spearing and poisoning the lions. To help solve this problem, the Born Free Foundation is using to carry out community outreach campaigns and construct lion proof bomas around Amboseli National Park.
In Ethiopia -the Bale Mountains are the last stronghold of the Ethiopian wolf. The slender wolf is the world’s rarest canid and they depend on the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme, funded by Born Free. The team vaccinates local dogs to prevent disease, monitors the wolves and runs education programmes.
In Tanzania - to the west of Africa’s mightiest mountain, a team of Tanzanian conservationists is working to protect some of East Africa’s most endangered wildlife. The project is the inspiration of Nick Martyn, wildlife visionary and distance runner extraordinaire. Born Free support the West Kilimanjaro Conservation Project and has trained 12 local Maasai pastoralists. The fieldmen patrol 700km² of the greater Amboseli basin, which straddles the Tanzania-Kenya border, monitoring all wildlife and human activities in the area. Their presence has proved a key deterrent to poachers – one of the greatest threats to wild animals.