Bitter Truth Behind Sweet Enjoyment. Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG) grabbing land in Uganda.

The following story is intended to show what else is happening in the world of coffee that many of you consume daily. It primarily concerns the two raw commodities coffee and cocoa, but does not exclude other products such as sugar, etc. Behind everyday luxury goods lie serious human rights violations: land grabbing, child labor, and systematic exploitation. These abuses are being covered up – and Switzerland is directly or indirectly involved through companies, banks, and authorities. What appears sweet has a bitter aftertaste and raises questions about our political and economic responsibility.The Hamburg Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG) – represented by three companies in Zug (company names are known to the writer) – is directly involved in one of the most serious cases of land grabbing in Uganda.

In 2001, around 2,000 small farmers were violently evicted by the army, their houses and stables burned down. In 2013, the Neumann subsidiary Kaweri Coffee Plantation was therefore sentenced to pay 11 million euros in compensation for human rights violations. To this day, however, only a few farmers have received a fraction of the awarded sum, while the majority continue to wait for justice. This scandal shows how international corporations generate profits at the expense of human rights – with a direct connection to Switzerland. Neumann, with its three companies in Zug, benefits from the low tax rates, and the Zug government – although informed – does nothing.

Several international corporations – including Nestlé, Starbucks, Tchibo, Jacobs Douwe Egberts, Aldi, Lidl, and Emmi – appear to continue sourcing coffee from the Neumann Group, which is verifiably involved in serious human rights violations in Uganda. Official responses from the companies remain vague, glossed over, or they refuse any further comment. Various documents are available in writing. While business reports advertise with buzzwords such as fair, sustainable, and transparent, there is clearly a lack of genuine responsibility in the supply chains. Swiss-based companies and consumers thus also indirectly profit from systematic land grabbing and exploitation.

The following authorities have been informed in writing and yet avoid any serious statement:

• SECO: Despite clear convictions of Neumann in 2013, SECO gives a shamefully evasive answer referring to a standstill since 2011.  
• Zug Government Council: The response from Councillor Tännler shows more concern for the tax revenues of the commodity companies than for human rights violations.  
• Lucerne Cantonal Bank: Although majority-owned by the canton, LUKB avoids any clear statement in its reply as a business partner of Emmi and due to its connections to the Neumann Group.  
• Swiss Coffee Association: The Coffee Association continues to court Neumann and allows the group to appear as a sponsor instead of distancing itself from its actions.

Ask in restaurants, in the Federal Palace, in the staff canteen of the city administration, in the cantonal hospitals in Zug, Lucerne, Sursee, or in any public coffee shop where the coffee beans come from. Any Swiss hotel could also be affected!! If the beans come from the Neumann Group, we are literally drinking the coffee of a supplier that was involved in human rights violations. It does not matter which coffee-growing country the coffee comes from. The fact that the trader has been convicted of a crime should provide sufficient incentive/duty/responsibility not to purchase goods from such companies anymore.

It must no longer be tolerated that a corporation, despite court conviction for land grabbing and exploitation, continues to supply goods with impunity while the victims wait for justice. Politics must enforce clear rules – so that such scandals do not repeat themselves.

Chocolate also has a bitter downside: Around 1.5 million children are exploited every year during the harvest season on cocoa plantations and have to toil under exploitative conditions and fight for survival. For several decades, the chocolate industry has promised to eliminate child labor, but reality looks different. (Harkin Protocol, 2001)In addition, uncertified cocoa is repeatedly declared as certified, while the media mostly remain silent on such commodity scandals. Instead, the impression is created that nothing can be changed anyway. Yet every individual can take action – by asking where the coffee or cocoa comes from and clearly condemning exploitation or child labour.

As long as investors and funds speculate on food exchanges, corporations like the Neumann Group continue to operate with impunity, and those responsible are not held accountable, greed remains stronger than justice.

Politically and socially, we must act: Ban speculation on foodstuffs, enforce transparency in supply chains, and consistently boycott products from exploitative sources – only then can a trade emerge that is fair, sustainable, and humane.

We are happy to provide additional information to the public upon request.