Does any one know of or have a recommendation for some type of alarm or notification system that will let you know if there was a power outage and its duration? Last night we had a power outage and it got me thinking about how I would know if my shop experienced one as well. Thanks in advance for any recommendations or suggestions.
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The Roasters Guild retreat kicks off today but instead of heading east I'm heading north. Finances are especially tight right now while working to open my 2nd coffeehouse (at my Roastery location) so it's just not in the cards. The cost of attending had to go to greens resupply, which I'm heading north to pick-up as soon as I quit playing around online. I may just make the hour or so drive east and crash the retreat this weekend and see if I can just hang out a few hours without paying registration...
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Sweetbird likes his fruit smoothies and is rather proud of them, but many people have asked how Sweetbird has been able to make his smoothies so delicious but with such a long shelf life and no need for chilled storage?Well, the magic lies in how the smoothies are produced. They are made with concentrated fruit juice and purees from a number of fruit growing co-operatives around the world which are certified to international fair-trade standards. It’s not just the ethically sourced fruit, but also the most environmentally responsible method of production. Using concentrates and pulps results in a smoothie with a lower carbon footprint (around 37.5% less carbon is produced from smoothies using concentrates than those using fresh fruit).But that is just the start. Unlike many of Sweetbird’s competitors, each bottle is made on the same line as the filling process, all of which is contained within a sterile environment. This means the bottles are not stored therefore eliminating the risk of dust or bacteria entering the bottle before being filled.Like all fruit smoothies Sweetbird’s are flash pasteurised (heated to between 80oC – 90oC for around 20 seconds) which kills off any nasties and retains the nutrient content. Before being filled with smoothie, every bottle is gas flushed with Nitrogen to help prevent oxidisation of the smoothie and to prevent any dents appearing in the bottle. This is also the reason why you may here a ‘pppssscchh’ when you open the bottle - it is not a sign that the smoothie has started fermenting!Sweetbird likes to make sure that our smoothies start their life in the celebrity style that they deserve, so we take a picture of each bottle to make sure they meet his impeccable standards. Once this is done they are wrapped up and shipped out.So is that all that makes Sweetbird Smoothies great? Well not only are they made from ethically sourced fruit, have a lower carbon foot print of many traditional smoothies, use a 100% recyclable PET bottle, been approved by the Vegetarian Society and for vegan diets by Viva! but they’re also lip smackingly good.
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The Sweetbird range of syrups, sauces and smoothies was the first range to gain the use of the internationally recognised seedling symbol from the Vegetarian Society. This has helped it become a popular brand among those businesses looking to take advantage of the UK’s booming multi million pound ethical market.With the number of vegans in the UK increasing from 120,000 in 1994 to just over 1.3 million in 2007* and now accounts for almost 2.2% of the UK population with this figure expected to grow to around 5% within the next few years. As a result the Sweetbird range has had all its syrups, blended smoothies, ready to drink smoothies as well as the Sweetbird chocolate sauce approved by Bristol based international vegan group Viva! (www.viva.org.uk)“We are proud to have the world’s first range of Vegetarian and Vegan certified coffee shop and catering products that will reassure those consumers that are looking for ethical, animal free products that the syrup, sauce or smoothie that they are using meets their exacting standards. With this booming demographic showing no signs of abating; we are once again glad that Sweetbird is an innovator and leader in the catering supply field.” Enthused Paul Maxwell of Sweetbird.Sweetbird has been a popular brand since its launch in 2005, the ever popular full range of over 35 coffee syrups are all free of artificial colours, preservative, flavours and GMO free. The introduction at last year’s Caffé Culture Show of the all new ethically sourced, 100% real fruit ambient storage smoothie from Sweetbird also gained the brand further praise from those in the industry.“I’m delighted that the range of Sweetbird smoothies, syrups and sauces have made the grade and been approved to use the Viva! vegan symbol. Now customers can sit back and enjoy a tasty dash of syrup with their coffee, or enjoy a healthy drink on the go, safe in the knowledge that they’re free from hidden nasties!” commented Angie Greenaway, Sales & Promotions Manager, Viva!For more information about the newly approved vegan lines from Sweetbird please visit www.heysweetbird.com*DEFRA Public Attitudes and Behaviours toward the Environment 2007
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Take Fresh Cup Magazine’s syrup survey to receive $10 off at freshcup.com and be entered to win tuition for two to The American Barista and Coffee School!*www.freshcup.com*Travel and accommodations not included, subject to availability, no purchase necessary.
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Sweetbird has rigorous standards and will only give his seal of approval when he is sure that all the nasty bits have been removed. Nothing artificial, phony or fake goes into any of the Sweetbird syrups, which have been packed full of natural flavours to give a mouth watering aroma when used with hot or cold drinks. With 33 flavours to choose from it’s not difficult to see why that are becoming the must have syrup amongst European baristas and with each 1 litre bottle contains 66 two pump servings (that’s 15ml per serving) the natural flavours will work wonders in the drinks of your choice.The full Sweetbird Syrup range is completely animal free and offers your vegetarian & vegan customers a chance to add a little syrup love to their soy latte. All Sweetbird Syrups have been approved by the world’s oldest and most respected vegetarian society (www.vegsoc.org) and for vegan diets by Europe's largest vegan group Viva! (www.viva.org.uk) to reassure your customers.Commenting from his beach front villa in Antigua, Sweetbird wants to reassure all readers of Barista about his commitment to natural products “I don’t like fake things in my syrups or sauces as they bring me out in a nasty rash. As a result I have instructed my minions to remove all the nasty stuff and use the finest and naturalist ingredients possible. I personally consider Sweetbird syrups to be the best on the market and allow all talented and attractive Baristas to create superb hot and chilled drinks. Now if you don’t mind I have to work on my tan.”The 33 all natural flavours includes 17 hot syrups including Chocolate Mint, Vanilla, Toasted Marshmallow, English Toffee and White Chocolate; 12 chilled fruit syrups including Raspberry, Strawberry, Peach, passion Fruit and Cherry, 3 Iced Tea syrups and 1 Chai flavoured syrup. The full range of Sweetbird products can be seen at www.heysweetbird.com.
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Early Friday morning, my wife and I welcomed our fourth daughter into this world. Lindsey Cathryn is a beautiful little thing, but she has something none of my other girls had.She has a birthmark on her left arm that resembles a coffee bean!One of those things that makes you go, "Hmmmmmmm..."
Posted by Coffee Kids on August 10, 2009 at 7:49am
Coffee Kids' partners are going local! Read about how our partners are launching efforts to develop their local economies and bring services to their communities.Download our latest newsletter at http://xrl.us/be9d3p - (1.9mb pdf). If you have any questions or want to get involved in helping coffee-farming famlies, give us a call at 505-820-1443 or e-mail us at info@coffeekids.org.
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It’s one thing to claim that your Smoothies are the best; it’s another to have a national weekly magazine proclaim it to their 300,000 readers. More magazine is one of the UK's best selling woman’s titles on the market. With its band of loyal readers it has become the perfect way to reach the highly important 18-24 ABC Female demographic. When it proclaimed that Sweetbird Strawberry Blended Smoothies are one of the five best detox smoothies, Paul Maxwell from Sweetbird wasn’t surprised.“It’s a great to be validated by a national weekly magazine that everyone agrees the smoothies you are selling really are great! It is fantastic to get such a boost and just as the beginning of the summer season. Sweetbird Strawberry blended smoothies have seen increased sales since the article was published showing the power that independent reviews in magazines such as More have on driving product sales. We love Sweetbird Strawberry blended smoothies and now we know so do many thousands of More readers.”The full range of Sweetbird blended smoothies were first launched in 2006 and since become one of the biggest selling brands of blended smoothies in Europe. Specifically developed to have a mouth watering taste when blended with ice and water, these 99% fat free smoothies come in Strawberry, Banana, Wildberry, Peach, Mango and Strawberry & Banana and are the only blended smoothie range to be certified by the Vegetarian Society and for vegan diets by Viva!.For more information about Sweetbird products please visit www.heysweetbird.com.
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Hello coffee community!I'm hanging out in Anaheim, California this weekend at the Celebrity Food Show as a V.I.P. guest with the Seattle Barista Academy.It was a little crazy flying down at the last minute, but I made it, and am having a blast meeting new people and showing off my barista skills and knowledge.I've gotten 2 additional job offers just walking around talking to people about coffee and chocolate! I'm SO serious! I just thought I was being a good barista by being informed about how they process coffee, chocolate, and teas, but I guess a lot of people working with the actual products have a limited grasp of the processing and production involved with the products they sell.. Hmmm... Know your products is what I'm saying here! Which reminds me... I have some studying to do as far as product knowledge...There's a lot of famous celebrity chefs all over this place, and I've been showing off, ha! If they get to be all cool and famous, let me show you what Specialty Coffee is all about! I've been showing the crowds the differences in free-pour vs. etching, what my custom Reg Barber can do, and how similar it can be compared to each chef having their own set of knives.I borrowed some lavender sugar and made the 2 ladies from the lavender booth some beautiful lattes. They traded me sugar cookies and a brownie, yum!Tomorrow is going to be nuts! The film crew for the Food Network is supposedly going to be filming, and I'm excited!!!! I might be on television! Woot! I'll have another blog up soon with more in depth look at what we're doing in California and my role at the Seattle Barista Academy.Here are a few pictures of what I've been up to this last week. Enjoy, I'll talk to you soon!Read more…
Sweetbird has been hitting the road all over the UK to promote the recently launched 100% real fruit smoothies. The Sweetbird-mobile, first seen at the Caffe Culture Show in London back in May has been winging its way around the country to attend some of the hottest events of the summer. The striking 1960’s VW camper van has also being doing a tour of cafes and coffee shops in the south west and plans are already underway to get further away from his nest.But it’s not just retailers who will get the Sweetbird experience, a national tour of Universities will be starting in September, to help promote the Sweetbird brand to a core smoothie consuming demographic. Sweetbird has already visited Glastonbury Festival, where they were offered at the VIP bar backstage at the Pyramid Stage to a host of celebrities such as Amy Winehouse, Neil Diamond, Beth Ditto of the Gossip and the living legend Shakin’ Stevens. Sweetbird was also at the world’s largest Vegan Festival, attended by over 11,000 people and internet gossip site, Popb*tch’s charity cricket match (at which we can neither confirm nor deny that ex-Eastenders heart throb Dean Gaffney indulged in Sweetbird 100% fruit smoothies and Byron Bay Cookies).“We will be heading to a town near you over the next few months to install a little love for our little feathered friend, Sweetbird. The response that we have been getting is phenomenal, people’s faces light up at the sight of the van and it causes quite a stir. It is a great way to build the brand to consumers and retailers alike.” Commented Paul Maxwell at Sweetbird.For more information on Sweetbird please visit www.hetsweetbird.com
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The WBC has drawn to a close for another year with a great win for Stephen Morrisey of Ireland; but thanks to Beyond the Bean and Sweetbird 100% Fruit Smoothies, it won’t be forgotten by the many families helped by Coffee Kids. As part of Beyond the Bean’s continuing programme of fundraising for numerous good causes around the world, the onsite cafe at the World Barista Championship worked in partnership with Beyond the Bean and Sweetbird over the weekend event to raise money for the international organisation Coffee Kids. £1 profit from every single bottle of Sweetbird 100% Fruit Smoothies sold at the event was donated to Coffee Kids to allow them to continue with the life enhancing work that they support in Central & South America.Coffee Kids, now in its 20th year, has worked in partnership with 12 different local groups that then work directly with coffee growing families to help improve the standard of living that they have and to enable them to develop new projects to benefit the local communities. Since its launch in 1988, over $4 million has been distributed to projects in many different regions of Central & South America which has help many coffee growing communities.“We are proud to be able to help fund the important work that Coffee Kids is doing and something that is so close to the hearts of the international barista community. We hope to be able to fundraise and promote Coffee Kids in the future. We would urge people in the coffee industry to look to support the vital work that Coffee Kids is undertaking.” Commented Helen Ostle, Marketing Manager for Sweetbird.For more information about the work of Coffee Kids please visit www.coffeekids.org. For more information about Sweetbird 100% Fruit Smoothies please visit www.heysweetbird.com
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With summer here, the annual freak-fest that is Big Brother is well underway. Joining the loons, freaks and other miscreants in the ‘car-crash’ TV stalwart is none other than Coffee Industry legend and self confirmed real fruit fanatic – Sweetbird.In a statement released through his publicist, Sweetbird has stated “I would like to make it clear that the resent lurid tabloid stories about me and a member of Girls Aloud are completely fictitious. I will be using my time in the Big Brother House instilling my love of everything pure, natural and 100% real fruit to all members of the house. I would also like to use this opportunity to tell all contestants of BB9 that at no point do I intend doing the washing up”A close personal friend of Mr Sweetbird (who for legal reasons can only be referred to as Helen X) has divulged his reasons for entering the house. “He is a driven bird, driven to make sure that everyone in the Big Brother House will get 100% pure fruit smoothies that haven’t had anything added or been mucked around with. He wants to build a better world filled with 100% real fruit smoothies that have been ethically sourced and cute little puppies. He will also be using this time to distance himself from a certain member of 80’s pop sensation T’pau.”Contestants will be sampling the all new Sweetbird 100% Fruit Smoothie that was launched a few months ago, over the next 13 weeks. The three, ethically sourced ambient storage 100% fruit smoothies will ensure that housemates will get at least 1 of their recommended 5 a day along with their daily helping of gruel. The flavours include Mango & Orange, Blackberry & Blueberry and Pineapple and Passion fruit. The ambient storage 330ml bottles are a perfect addition to all retail locations.
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Your Customers Are Yelping. Are You?If you haven’t heard about Yelp yet, I think it’s time. Why? Because it’s FREE ADVERTISING for your coffee shop! …And because people are looking for local coffee shops like yours and they are finding them on Yelp.com or on a mobile device like the iPhone.Yelp is a place where people to go to find the best local businesses. The best local businesses are determined by the customer reviews. By posting your coffee shop to Yelp you will be found more often and by travelers as well as locals. If they’re on the web they can find you by zip code. If they have an iPhone or similar device, they can find the coffee shops closest to their location using GPS technology built into their phone.The real power of Yelp lies in the user reviews. Their slogan is “Real People. Real Reviews.” In short, here’s how it works. Your customers find you on Yelp, they log into their account and they write a review about your coffee shop. It’s simple, it’s effective and it’s an amazing way to get testimonials…and did I mention it’s FREE? Of course a customer can write a negative review also so you have to make sure you’re on your toes and give the best service possible.The bottom line is Yelp = Free Coffee Shop Advertising. Here’s what you get: a FREE listing on Yelp, the ability to upload a ton of information and photos of your coffee shop, a link to your website, and FREE customer testimonials!Here’s how to start Yelping:1. Go to www.Yelp.com and search for your business. You may already be there. If you are listed and didn’t set it up, you’ll have to unlock your page. Under your listing there will be a link that says “Is this your business”. Click on that. [If you are not listed on yelp, skip to step 4.]2. Next click on “Go to Step 1” to begin unlocking your page. You’ll need to fill out a quick form to setup an account.3. After you setup your account on Yelp, you’ll need to authenticate your account by phone. You will get an automated phone call and you will need to enter the provided pin number which will unlock your account. [Skip to Step 5]4. To setup a new account, go to Yelp.com/business and click on “Get Started” to setup a new account. Follow the step by step instructions for setting up your business page on Yelp.5. After adding or unlocking your account, you’ll be able to post all of your contact information, business hours, upload images, add menus, coupons, promotions and more. You’ll also be able to reply to customer reviews and will have access to traffic stats and graphs.Good Luck and Happy Yelping!!==========================================================================Aaron C. Daywitt is the President of Effective Media, Inc. and specializes in targeted online promotional product stores like Coffee Shop Promos where they provide quality printed coffee mugs to coffee shops all over the United States. For more information visit www.coffeeshoppromos.com or www.emipromos.com.
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For the past two years in the barista community, the constant buzz in terms of new equipment has rested in two places; controlling temperature/pressure and grind quality. It became apparent as Kyle Glanville walked into competition with a yet unnamed Mazzer doserless grinder that there was a new game in town; no more clacking and pulling; no more left dose and excess spillage. Since that time the Robur E has emerged with a glowing electric hopper lid and a not-so-glowing price bracket in the range of what one used to pay for a decent one group espresso machine. As expected, too, the market has followed suit with the development of doserless and doser-ed timer grinders such as Anfim and Compak's K8 Automatic.The most recent installment of the doserless timer grinder is an offspin of Compak's WBC edition K10 conic. It has a robust motor with low burr speed and a great quality set of conical burrs that produce low heat, high volume grinding with ease. I will note that I am using the K10's prototype and, thus, there are already planned revisions from some of the changes that really need to be made. Nonetheless, I will attempt to paint an accurate picture of the grinder as it stands now along with what you might expect in the future.Appearance: Little has been done aesthetically to the K10 that you might be familiar with. The grinder sent to us was the painted black casing identical to the previous doser grinders but different than the shiny competition edition. However, the removal of the doser leaves the bullet shaped grinder looking tall and aerodynamic (which might be useful if we were trying to beat land speed record or reduce drag on a porsche). The doser has been replaced by an elephant-like schnozz chute that slopes to meet a thin, sharp fork where the portafilter rests. The distance between the fork and the chute leaves a little issue with updosing, but i'll get to that later. The biggest change other than the doser to the look of the grinder is the addition of a digital timer neatly placed on the lower left part of the grinder body. It reads out in seconds, tenths, and hundredths of seconds in a bright green oel display.Design: The spout is shaped fairly well and flows freely when grinding, though there is a small amount of buildup at the end of the spout after continual use. I'm not quite sure if there is a slight lip or if the spout is just not smooth enough to pass all the coffee without resistance, but it can collect a gram or so after a dozen cycles. This seems to be exacerbated by the closeness of the fork to the spout. As I mentioned before, using dosages up to 21 g precariously place the piled coffee slightly into the dosing chute, causing excess buildup. I have been assured that this will be in the process of change when the completed model goes to production. The pf fork is also a little of an issue as the metal seems to be thin enough to bend and bounce the portafilter. This leaves opportunity for the portafilter to jostle and bounce coffee out of itself during use. Again, the changes have been planned to make a more rigid resting spot.The timer is a real win for the grinder as it's exaction through fine tuning in terms of time leads to more costumizable and controllable dosages. Changes are simple and intuitive in terms of time adjustment. simply pressing the "P" button takes you into time programming mode. After holding the button down for a short time it jumps from changing hundredths of seconds to tenths. Holding it further for a few seconds will change whole seconds. Once you've made your adjustment you can simply press "p" again to save your settings. You can dose about 21 g in four seconds or so, which is a little slower than the E, but then the K10 does not have a burr auger.Wastage/Efficiency: Given that this grinder is optimized for efficiency, there a few concerns about its capability to follow through. The grinder does clump a little bit. Though not as bad as the old mahlkonig k30, which produces hard clumps, it does produce light clumps which tend to roll off a nearly full mound of coffee and spill on to the grinder's waste tray. That added with the obvious residual left in the chute when updosing adds up to relatively acceptable waste for most grinders, yet it leaves something to be desired in the pursuit for hyper efficienct grinding. The waste tray also leaves unnecessary mess for the user because the plastic removal plate sits lower than the grinder body, creating a gap for coffee to become wedged in. This can lead to coffee grounds spillage under the tray and around the base or under the base. this aspect could use considerable revision, though it would be less necessary if there were less wasteFunction: The time cycle is activated by pressing in a button located between the chute and the dosing fork with the portafilter. After considering how such a button might function after getting coffee grounds stuck in and around it (which was a problem with the automatic 8) they decided that the production model will be equipped with a finger activated dosing button above the spout to keep it more clean and functional. The huge improvement over the robur e in the production model will be the three way power switch. You can choose to turn the grinder off, place it on for timed dosing or switch it into manual position and dose by pressing the button once to activate and once to deactivate the dosing cycle. Because of the switch in tandem with a button independent of the timer, one can continue to use the grinder even if the timer fails for some reason, which has been a consistent question and concern for those who are looking at the robur e.In the cup: Though the K10 varies in dosing function, nothing has really changed in terms of consistent, low heat grinding. We put it through the ringer next to our other grinders at the coffee institute including the previous doser model of the k10 and it measure up confidently to the standards of espresso grinding. I will say that we did not have a robur e on bar to compare and contrast, so I am hoping to find someone willing to do a side-by-side evaluation. If not, look for a grinder showdown with pictures and a review after the great lakes jam this fall. We found great clarity in the cup with our standard dosing parameters and were very pleased with its consistent dosing in terms of controllable extraction.This is all preliminary in judgment, so don't assume my word as the end of it, but I do believe that Compak has done very well in producing a top of the market piece of equipment that rivals the best in doserless timer grinding, and at 1,700 a piece with the digital timer, it's a steal of a deal. You will also be able to buy a timerless model for a pricepoint well below that, though I have heard no confirmed prices. If you've had any experiences with thiis grinder, please share what you've found.
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The Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) was established with an ambitious goal of eliminating food shortages and hunger in Ethiopia by creating an efficient marketing system for agricultural commodities. Barely two months after its launch, the highly praised exchange platform found itself caught in the midst of the complex global coffee trade, an undertaking that is entirely different and farther from its original vision of "revolutionizing" the inefficient domestic commodity market.In August 2008, the government enacted a new law that forces the trading of all of the country's coffees through ECX and ECX welcomed the decision. Since then, the government confiscated stocks of coffee from exporters and revoked licenses, filled in the vacuum with the Ethiopian Grain Trade Enterprise (EGTE), and sold Specialty coffees at commodity grade coffee prices.Following its first rough encounter, ECX is now engaged in talks with Specialty coffee buyers and faced with challenges of wining the hearts and minds of traders locally. But, the effect of ECX on coffee growers is yet to be noticed. This piece attempts to reveal the pitfalls of trading coffee through ECX and its impact on small-scale farmers.Learning coffee on the flyAs it has now become apparent, ECX was not ready to accommodate trading operations of a complex global commodity when it embarked on coffee export. This partly explains why ECX has had to run into problems as soon as it started its coffee trade.ECX was initially established to create a trading platform for domestic agricultural commodities, mainly grain. The ECX was created with primary purposes of eliminating the archaic marketing system whose inefficiency, according to ECX's founder, Eleni Gebre-Medhin, are in part responsible for the recurring food shortages and hunger in parts of Ethiopia, and increasing the value of the domestic grain. Dr. Eleni described her vision in June 2007 at TED Talk as:"Ethiopia's domestic market is about $1 billion of value and we feel over the next five years, if Ethiopia can capture even 40%, just 40% of the domestic market and add jut 25% value to that market, the value of the market doubles. ECX, moreover, can become a trading platform for the Pan-African market in agricultural commodity. Ethiopia's agricultural market is 30% higher than South Africa's grain production; and, in fact, Ethiopia is the second largest maize producer in Africa."This ambition is founded on plausible assumptions about domestic grain trade but it did not take into consideration the state of coffee trade. Because the market system was designed to bring about changes in the grains trade – not in the coffee sector – ECX ended up further complicating the problems facing coffee growers when it suddenly decided to take on coffee trade.Mandatory exchangeBy requiring 100% of coffee trade be conducted through ECX, the government eliminated direct trades. The government says that was necessary in order to improve the sector and prices. This is frivolous.Unlike grains, coffee trade is characterized by unregulated supply, market monopoly by a few multinationals companies, and stiff competitions among producing countries. Coffee is a global commodity. It is the world’s second most traded commodity next to oil with its prices determined at the New York exchange market. The trade is largely controlled by the world's biggest coffee buyers. Five multinational companies, Nestlé, Philip Morris, Procter and Gamble, Sara Lee, and Kraft Foods buy about 70% of the world’s coffee and play pivotal roles in setting world coffee prices. Coffee growing nations do not have a say in this unregulated global market.To mitigate the burden, other coffee growing countries are resorting to creating differentiations and to find a place in the Specialty niche market. The direct trade relationship with Specialty coffee buyers gives these nations a relative stability, premium prices, and incentives to increasing quality standards.ECX, on the other hand, adopted a strategy of forced bulk trading through a warehouse receipt system and eliminated direct trade. Still, it hopes to improve prices and the sector.Underestimating Specialty coffeeThe global coffee industry is increasingly moving towards greater transparency of coffee origins and differentiation but the ECX system is heading in the opposite direction. Ethiopia is naturally endowed with the variety of coffees demanded by the Specialty coffee buyers. The fine quality of its coffees and the distinctive features of the sector, including its genetic resources, abundance of wild coffee trees, and the organic coffee production, earned Ethiopia a unique place in the global coffee marketplace. Ironically, instead of capitalizing on these unique attributes, ECX aims at bundling all of the coffees into commodity grades.One possible explanation for this absurd strategy is ECX's underestimation of the importance of Specialty grade coffees. “The “specialty-plus” market segment is only 3.7% of the total coffees exported, with the remainder to be considered as commodity coffee," says ECX in its whitepaper titled What is in a Bean?This unsubstantiated analysis has led ECX to a mistaken conclusion, thus its decision to neglect the Specialty market and focus on aggregate coffee production. ECX's estimation is flawed and can be proved wrong by the following cursory appraisal of empirical evidences.In 2008, Starbucks, the world's largest Specialty coffee buyer, bought 192,500 tons of Specialty coffee, of which 5-10% (the company’s official numbers always fall within this range) was directly sourced from East Africa. (The major coffee growers in East Africa are Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda.) Since Ethiopia is the largest exporter of Specialty coffee in Africa, and, given Starbucks' long history of close relationship with coffee growers in the country, it is reasonable to assume around 3% of Starbucks' purchase (or about 60% of its East African purchase) comes from Ethiopia. Meaning, around 5,775 tons of Starbucks’ 2008 purchases is practically from Ethiopia. Since Ethiopia’s export during that year was 170,888 tons, Starbucks’ purchase only represents 3.4% of Ethiopia’s export.So, if at least 3.4% of Ethiopia's Specialty grade was directly sold to Starbucks, one can imagine how the number can easily jump to a range of upper teens to twenties when the quantity that Starbucks bought through Germany (Starbucks buys most of its coffee from Germany which is also one of Ethiopia's major export markets) and the coffees directly sold to other small buyers through direct trade.It is thus extraordinary that ECX diminishes the roles of Specialty coffee in Ethiopia. Furthermore, it is unbelievable that ECX failed to see the fact that Specialty coffees drive the global coffee trade.Marketing experts agree that the prestigious coffees such as Sidama, Yirgacheffe, and Harar serve marketers as ingredient brands. The prominent Oxford Professor Douglas Holt defines ingredient brands as: “brands that are used as one component “ingredient” of another branded product or service. Gore waterproof fabric and Intel computer chips are classic examples."Dr. Holt argues, “Consumers view the ingredient’s inclusion as a distinctive and valuable addition to the offer. The ingredient is revealed to end-consumers through some sort of distinctive mark (name, logo, etc.) so that the inclusion of the ingredient increases the perceived value of the offering."By undermining the roles played by Specialty coffees to promote the sale of Ethiopia's aggregate coffee export, ECX's bulk trading system poses a threat to commoditizing some of the distinct coffees in the world. Farmers that grow some these finest beans expect their produce to fetch them a price better than that of the run-of-the-mill beans. The lack of incentive for their hard work may have adverse effect on the country's Specialty coffee production. As quality deteriorates, the country’s prestigious brands water down as well.Unfair competitionWhen responding to criticisms about its position on direct trade, ECX cites as an example the cooperatives and commercial farms that are directly selling Specialty coffee outside of the ECX system. This is true but the problem is, by allowing selected group of growers to have access to the Specialty market, ECX leaves out the smallholder families that are not organized in cooperatives. This practice deprives farmers of the privilege of establishing business relationship with external buyers.In addition, the current ECX system also subjects small-scale farmers to a potential market monopoly by a few exporters. Farmers are not represented in the ECX Board of Directors, a body that currently comprises three major coffee exporters, including Berhane Hailu, General Manager of EGTE, and seven government officials. This degree of power imbalance puts farmers at a disadvantage.Coffee trade under current ECX system is far from being a level playing field. It is difficult to imagine a marketplace that is fair to farmers in a setting where the government owned enterprise, EGTE, working to maximize profit and ensure uninterrupted inflow of foreign exchange also directs ECX. As far as small-scale coffee growers are concerned, ECX has so far not been “fair, independent, and free.”If ECX were to be of any benefit to the poor farmers, it should create an environment where the bulk trading system functions alongside a direct trading system for Specialty coffees and other certifications such as Bird Friendly, forest, and organic coffees. This is a lifeline for many smallholder farmers and that is where they have comparative advantage over competitors.
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¡Noe Castro Cacao visits El Salvador, Central America!Noe Castro Cacao, International Barista professional, with more than 8 years experience, came to El Salvador and trained Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V.'s personnel.La Libertad, El Salvador, Central America, Friday 31st of July 2009 – Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V. is preparing to open the doors of its new Coffee Shop in El Salvador, Central America. “ We’ve put a lot of effort into this project and have decided to open in September 09. We’ve been training almost 8 to 10 hours daily for 4 months now. Our main objective is to serve our clients the best cup of coffee they’ve ever tasted, without having to rely on only one Barista serving it,” confirmed Mr. Jonathan Rodríguez, President of Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V.Noe Castro Cacao, prestigious Barista, with more than eight years experience, known worldwide for his numerous jobs and almost 5 years experience in national and international competitions, was invited over by Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V. to El Salvador, Central America. During the week of July 27th 09, for four exhausting and consecutive days, Noe trained the Baristas for opening day. “We had the honor of meeting Noe on a business trip in his natal country, and for the first time we are pleased to have him visit El Salvador,” says Mr. Rodríguez.“Barista Coach” nicknamed by Zegsa’s personnel won the 2006 Barista Championship of Guatemala and had the amazing experience of representing his country for the World Barista Championship held that same year in Tokyo, Japan. He had to compete with almost 45 Baristas from different nations! In 2007, during national competition, he won the title for “Best Espresso”.During the intense Barista training of four days, Noe shared all of his experiences, motivations and knowledge, of more than 8 years fully into and passionate about this industry. “Noe is an authentic professional, we wanted to discover our potential and it was him who woke it up out of each and every one of us, we are glad he could join us and are thankful for everything he’s done.”What motivated Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V. to invite Noe to El Salvador was the need to reach their main objective. “ With Noe’s help, we reached our goal!” said Mr. Rodríguez.The name of the new coffee Shop is a surprice to be revealed later and over the Internet in Facebook or Barista Exchange. However, Mr. Rodriguez did tell us, it would be located on the secondfloor of Centro Comercial Plaza Merliot, (Plaza Merliot Mall) at La Libertad, El Salvador.Mr. Rodriguez did not forget to mention, “It has taken us more than 8 months of trainings, searching for the right information, being patient and preparing the right way to reach the level we are at right now, we're making sure to be different. We will always support El Salvador’s Coffee and its going to be our only ingredient, for any coffee beverage our Baristas prepare our clients.”To be one of the first to find out the latest Coffee News, publications and be able to meet the Salvadoran Baristas who will work in Zegsa’s New Coffee Shop, or if you want to know more about what happened during training with Noe Castro, look for them in Facebook or Barista Exchange as Barista-Pro and add them as friends.Zegsa Inversiones S.A. de C.V., formally invites everyone to await our news of the upcoming events for opening day; 100% made in El Salvador.
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