Kraft to switch Kenco brand to 100% Rainforest Alliance

Kraft is switching its entire Kenco brand to Rainforest Alliance-certified coffee - a move it hopes will win over more ethical shoppers and give it a point of difference over market leader Nescafé.

Kenco's Really Rich, Really Smooth and Decaffeinated jars will be the first to switch, with 75% of the beans for the freeze-dried range sourced from farms certified by the Rainforest Alliance by the end of this year.

The rest of the £98m brand's portfolio, including Kenco Fusion, Cappio, Rappor and Tassimo, will begin converting in 2009, with the freeze-dried range moving to 100%-certified beans by 2010.

It's the first time Kraft has converted an entire brand to the ethical mark.

Kraft launched a number of Rainforest Alliance brands in different markets across the world including the UK, where the Kenco Sustainable Development line, launched in 2005, is growing 5% year-on-year and worth £1m at retail and £5m in foodservice. Kenco Pure, its single-origin certified coffee, which was relaunched last year, is up 60% to £10m. "We've already proved through these brands that this concept has great interest to consumers," said Kraft director of corporate affairs Jonathan Horrell. "There's a consumer trend for people looking for sustainability in what they buy. Even better if they get that through a trusted brand."

Between them, Kenco Pure and Sustainable Development are the biggest-selling certified instant coffee brands in the UK, with 32% market share [Nielsen].

The Sustainable Development sub-brand will now shift its focus as it becomes the norm for Kenco. "We'll see where we go," said Horrell. "What we do next with Sustainable Development is being worked on."

The initiative will be supported with a multimillion-pound marketing programme at the end of the year, spanning TV, in-store activity and on-pack communication.

In January, PG Tips began carrying the Rainforest Alliance logo across its range, making it the biggest ethical food and drink brand. Rival Nescafé launched a Fairtrade Foundation-accredited coffee, Partners Blend, in 2005.