Starbucks has completed the issuance of a $1bn sustainability bond, the largest of the three the company has issued to date.

“We are very pleased to see that our new Sustainability Bond attracted significant investor interest and was oversubscribed,” said Patrick Grismer, CFO of Starbucks. “The bond demonstrates Starbucks commitment to meaningful, continual progress toward our aspiration of sustainable coffee, served sustainably. It also illustrates a trend toward heavier interest from investors in our socially and environmentally focused projects – in this case supporting coffee farmers and leading in green retail.”

As with the two previously issued bonds, funds will support ethically sourced coffee. This includes purchasing coffee that is verified by Coffee and Farmer Equity (CAFÉ) scheme and new and refinanced loans to coffee farmers made through Starbucks $50m Global Farmer Fund.

The bond will help fund the company’s Greener Retail commitments, including its Greener Stores initiative (the design, building and operation of 10,000 Greener Stores globally by 2025) and support investments in greener cups and packaging as Starbucks works to reduce our environmental footprint.

As with all sustainability bonds the company must report on how the funds are spent and the impact they have made against the initiatives. Starbucks will publish annual updates of the allocation of the proceeds throughout the term of the sustainability bond until the proceeds have been fully allocated to projects meeting the eligibility criteria.

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