Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Steve Lanphier on December 31, 2007 at 2:05pm

Hi Mike,

Talk to your importer about staying right on the farms where you will be visiting, this is much better than going to a hotel every night, you can develop wonderful friendships with the producers and get to see how the live. Going during harvest season is good so that you can observe the processing firsthand too. That being said, there is nothing like being there during the short flowering season.
Where are you planning on going?
Steve

Permalink Reply by Spencer on January 1, 2008 at 11:20am

Mike-

Depending on how adventurous you are, you may want to select a safe and easy trip. Costa Rica is a safe trip, easy to get to and has very good opportunities to learn about coffee farming.

The Roasters Guild of the SCAA regularly runs origin trips, as does Java Ventures and there may be a few other groups that regularly host origin tours. You may also want to research the coffee certification groups that you support for information on origin trips that they may host: RA, UTZ, CoffeeKids, FairTrade, and JuanValdez....

Be careful, as when you travel with an importer you will most likely see only their clients or just the coffees they represent. You may want to travel at origin with an exporter who may know much more about the coffee and regions and have no direct sales relationship with you - so the trip will be educational and not sales oriented.

I love Brasil and will fully recommend it for travel; however you will need several trips at great length to each of the main growing regions before you can begin to understand to origin.

Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Panama are all very good places to start, but some may require a bit more caution than others.

Also, be sure to plan your trip at a time of the year to correspond with what you want to see; flowering or harvesting.

I hope that helps.

Spencer

Permalink Reply by Mike Shipley on January 1, 2008 at 11:57am

Hey Steve, Thanks.

I have talked with my importer about a potential trip to Sumatra or Papua New Guinea in the summer but nothing has been decided. Thanks for the tips. Much better to piggy-bag with experienced importers than go at it alone huh?

Permalink Reply by Mike Shipley on January 1, 2008 at 12:09pm

Very helpful Spencer. I hadn't even thought of pursuing third party certifiers for origin trips. That makes a lot of sense traveling with an exporter rather than an importer.

By the way whats the fun in traveling without at least a little bit of danger...

Permalink Reply by Spencer on January 1, 2008 at 12:42pm

Mike -

Considering I am a bi-lingual illiterate, there is always a bit of danger and excitement in all my travel. Nothing beats driving through a city or town in a bullet-proof SUV!

Be sure to research your destination and take a few moments to see a few sights of interest along the way - eat at the local cafes and imbibe in the local libations!

All the best!

Permalink Reply by Mike Shipley on January 1, 2008 at 12:54pm

"Imbibe in the local libations!" You are a true professional aren't you Spencer... Thanks again.

Permalink Reply by Steve Lanphier on January 1, 2008 at 6:40pm

Mike,

If you are thinking about Papua New Guinea check out my posting on my trip to the central highlands, (Mt Hagan, Goroka, Lae). I really had a great time there and the people are wonderful. Who do you get your New Guinea from? Do you know Aarlie Hull?
Brazil is a great trip too and I can help you with staying on farms in the Cerrado and Sol Minas region while your'e there.
Cheers
Steve