KaapKargo Sets Sail for Sustainable Trade
- Peggy Engelmann
- Sep 26
- 3 min read
At Colombia’s Premier Coffee & Cacao Fair, Neiva, Colombia — September 2025
This month, the city of Neiva became an epicenter of Colombia’s organic coffee and cacao movement during the 5th International Coffee, Cacao, and Agrotourism Fair (FICCA 2025). With more than 120 organic farmers and entrepreneurs in attendance, the event showcased the best of Huila’s agricultural potential — and also made space for innovation beyond the field.
Among the highlights of the fair was the participation of KaapKargo, a partner of the Fair Winds Collective and a pioneer in zero-emission, wind-powered maritime transport. Invited as a keynote contributor, KaapKargo shared their vision of truly sustainable logistics — proving that what happens after the harvest is just as crucial as how it's grown.
FICCA 2025: Local Roots, Global Connections
Organized by the Gobernación del Huila, FICCA 2025 took place from September 25 to 28 at the José Eustasio Rivera Convention Center and La Vorágine Fairgrounds. The fair’s mission is to strengthen the local economy by connecting small- and medium-sized producers from Huila’s coffee, cacao, and agrotourism sectors to national and international partners.
A total of 110 fully sponsored exhibition stands were awarded to local businesses — 90 for coffee producers and 20 for cacao growers — as part of an effort to elevate micro and small enterprises. These stands gave family-run farms and cooperatives direct access to markets, buyers, and networks that would otherwise be out of reach.
KaapKargo: Rethinking Trade, One Voyage at a Time
KaapKargo was invited to present their work on climate-resilient shipping as a key part of the fair’s international programming. During their presentation, the team introduced attendees to their model of zero-emission maritime logistics, powered by wind.
Their sailing vessel, the Ide Min, transports cargo across the Atlantic with no fossil fuels, offering a compelling alternative to the high-emission shipping industry that dominates global trade today. By doing so, KaapKargo ensures that the ethical efforts of smallholder producers — growing organically, regeneratively, and fairly — are not undermined by polluting transport methods.
The message resonated deeply with the crowd: if the products are organic, the logistics should be too.
Huib Koel: On the Ground, Among Growers
While the Ide Min is being prepared for its next transatlantic voyage, Huib Koel, the manager and a core member of the KaapKargo team, is currently traveling across Colombia. His role is vital — ensuring that every shipment begins with integrity.
Over the past weeks, Huib has visited cacao-growing communities throughout Huila, verifying that the cacao sourced for the upcoming voyage meets the highest standards of organic cultivation, social responsibility, and fair working conditions. This includes direct conversations with families, cooperative leaders, and field workers.
His mission reflects KaapKargo’s deep commitment to traceability, fairness, and transparency across the entire supply chain — from seed to sail.
Why Shipping Matters in the Fight for Climate Justice
Global cargo shipping is responsible for nearly 3% of global CO₂ emissions, and that share is expected to rise. For rural producers working hard to grow organically and regenerate their land, conventional shipping remains an invisible weak link — one that can erase the environmental benefits of their efforts.
KaapKargo is tackling this challenge head-on.
By offering emissions-free shipping routes and building long-term relationships with producer communities, they are charting a new course for ethical trade — one where logistics reinforce, rather than compromise, sustainability.
At FICCA 2025, this vision inspired conversations not only about transportation, but also about the future of global commerce: slower, cleaner, fairer — and wind-powered.
A Fair Trade Future, Powered by Wind
KaapKargo’s collaboration with local farmers in Huila is about more than exports. It’s a partnership of values — rooted in mutual respect, ecological responsibility, and economic justice.
As the Ide Min prepares to return to Colombia’s Caribbean coast and later set sail for Europe, it carries not only cacao and coffee but also the stories of the people behind every bean. Their work, their care, and their hope for a more sustainable future will soon reach the hands of consumers — transported gently by the wind.
This is the promise of Fair Winds. Cargo-under-sail
About KaapKargo
KaapKargo is a maritime logistics initiative powered by wind, dedicated to connecting sustainable producers in the Global South with conscious markets in Europe. As part of the Fair Winds Collective, KaapKargo promotes zero-emission trade rooted in social equity and ecological restoration.
To follow KaapKargo’s voyages or learn more about the Fair Winds Collective partners and their mission, visit
Fair Winds, Peggy
