BIKAS GREEN Marche to connect Japan shoppers with Nepal coffee forest

BIKAS COFFEE will gather more than 20 social‑minded food, apparel and lifestyle brands at its “BIKAS GREEN Marche” event, held on 31 May and 1 June at the company’s Edogawabashi cafe in central Tokyo. A portion of sales will fund the company’s tree‑planting programme in Nepal, linking shoppers’ everyday purchases with the restoration of coffee‑growing forests.

You can plant your own coffee tree too

The market coincides with the fifth phase of “BIKAS COFFEE VILLAGE”, a project that lets supporters become owners of individual coffee trees. From 23 May to 29 June the company will crowdfund the planting of a record 2,400 seedlings, expanding for the first time beyond its original site in Harpan village to nearby Darimbot Village in Kavrepalanchok District.

Darimbot’s 700 residents practise agroforestry, which involves sustainable inter‑planting of crops, fruit trees and timber species, to secure food and income while protecting the local ecosystem. Roughly a decade ago many farmers abandoned coffee because they lacked processing knowledge and markets. BIKAS COFFEE aims to revive the crop and raise household earnings by supplying seedlings and a guaranteed buyer.

Supporters pay for a seedling that bears their name. Farmers tend the tree for three years, after which green beans harvested from that tree are sent to the owner. The model shares agricultural risk, builds long‑term relationships between growers and drinkers and creates a more thoughtful form of consumption than buying anonymous beans off the shelf.

More than just coffee: Addressing climate and livelihood risks

Arabica coffee is threatened by rising temperatures and diseases such as coffee‑leaf rust; some studies project that suitable farmland could fall by half by 2050. Agroforestry mitigates these shocks by shading coffee plants, improving soil moisture and diversifying farmers’ income. Planting 2,400 trees is expected to absorb up to 30  tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, roughly the emissions from thirteen petrol cars driven 10,000 km each.

Gokul Bhujel, BIKAS COFFEE’s local partner and a native of Darimbot, says the project “offers farmers a second chance at coffee and a reason for young people to stay in the village.” Twenty‑one households have already requested for the seedlings.

BIKAS COFFEE invites coffee lovers to share responsibility for the forests that fill their morning cups! Support their crowdfunding project here on the CAMPFIRE project page, or visit their Marche at the end of this month, and meet like minded friends. If you’d like to hear more and meet the BIKAS staff, they’d be traveling in their mobile cafe, visiting Yokohama, Tokyo, Mie, Shonan and Osaka, serving drinks and explaining the ownership system.

BIKAS GREEN Marche details

Name: BIKAS GREEN Marche 2025
Date: 31 May 2025 & 1 June 2025
Time: 12 am ~ 6 pm
Address: Plaza Edogawabashi 112, 1‑23‑6 Sekiguchi, Bunkyo‑ku, Tokyo (Google Map)

BIKAS Mobile Cafe Schedule

May 25: Yokohama, Koganecho (with Plus Personal Gym)
May 26: Tokyo, Bunkyo (Garakuta Studio)
May 27: Yokohama, Hodogaya (We are. workout)
June 6~7: Mie, Iinan (Shinkamiki Cafeteria)
June 8~9: Mie, Nabari (FLAT BASE)
June 21: Kanagawa, Shonan
June 27~28: Osaka, Umeda