Mindoro Island, Philippines

Wild-harvested coffee from one of the last great forests

Arawatan is a forest restoration and coffee sourcing project on Mindoro Island — producing some of the rarest coffee in the Philippines while restoring 10,000 hectares of critically degraded forest.

The Coffee The Project

Mindoro Forest Coffee

Wild-harvested Robusta from the forests of Southern Mindoro

Deep in the forests of Southern Mindoro, Robusta coffee grows wild beneath the canopy — untouched by pesticides, uncultivated by machine, harvested by hand by communities who know these forests intimately. This is not plantation coffee. It is forest coffee.

Every bag supports communities restoring Mindoro's forests and funds the development of the island's first scalable coffee processing facility.

Origin

Southern Mindoro

Species

Robusta (C. canephora)

Harvest

Wild, hand-picked

Processing

Natural sun-dried

Growing

Forest-shade, zero inputs

Sourcing

Local People's Organizations

Building the infrastructure

We're raising funding for the first scalable coffee processing facility on Mindoro Island — enabling communities to process, grade, and export wild-harvested coffee at volumes that reach international specialty markets. Interested in sourcing or investing?

The Arawatan Carbon Project — VCS ID 6023

Restoration designed for carbon integrity and community ownership

The Mindoro Arawatan Carbon Project is a 10,000-hectare reforestation initiative spanning Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, co-developed with 6 Mangyan Indigenous Cultural Communities and 12 Farmer Organizations.

Following the Verified Carbon Standard (VM0047 ARR methodology), the project is designed to generate approximately 2.1 million VCUs over 30 years. Coffee, cacao, and vanilla are built directly into the restoration model. Developed by Wovoka, a high-integrity carbon and biodiversity project developer trusted by the World Bank and ADB.

VCS ID 6023 — Verra Registry →

Methodology

VM0047 (ARR)

Area

10,000 ha

Expansion

38,000 ha

Projected VCUs

2.1 Million

Communities

6 ICC + 12 POs

Project Period

30 Years

On the Ground

Planting has begun — 1 million trees with GCash GForest

In July 2026, Wovoka Philippines and GCash GForest signed a five-year partnership to plant over 1 million native trees and mangroves across Oriental Mindoro and Camarines Norte. Community members plant, monitor, and maintain the forests — turning restoration into long-term livelihoods with year-round income.

Lee Pearson (Wovoka) and Michelle Fernandez (GCash) sign partnership agreement

Lee Pearson (Wovoka) and Michelle Fernandez (GCash) sign the MOA to plant 1 million trees across Mindoro and Camarines Norte.

Wovoka community members lead planting efforts in Oriental Mindoro, supported by GCash GForest.