I would like to share a story regarding the annual competition held by the SCAA and a particular type of Colombian coffee. Specifically, I want to share one successful story of “hunting†coffee jewels in origin.
As you may know, each year the Specialty Coffee Association of America organizes a contest called a Roaster Guild Coffee of the Year competition. This competition selects — from around the world — the best origin coffee based on specific attributes. Below is an interview with Mr. Villegas from the Colombian Coffee exporter company C.I. Racafe & CIA S.C.A. If you check the record of this competition you may notice they have scored among the top 10 each year. In the last event they earned fourth place with a Huila origin coffee.
Based on the fact that they usually are ranked among the top positions each year (http://members.scaa.org/about/guilds/default.aspx). I decided to visit their headquarter in Bogota, Colombia, to set up a short interview with Mr. Villegas who manages this company.
I asked Mr. Villegas if there is any protocol in place within his company that may help to guide the process of selecting specialty coffees.
Mr. V: Since our first participation right after the contest started on 2004 or 2005, we have been selecting the best that we could based on our knowledge and expertise supported by a country-wide infrastructure. We have excellent cuppers and facilities but I would like to add that besides a recognition received by the SCAA, which is important, we have not seen an increase of our business just because we have been well-ranked in this contest.
In addition, we have an integral approach which means that we rely on a professional team of administrative and technical persons that not only are visiting many farms looking for this special coffee but are also working in many other projects apart from the SCAA event. I compare this process of hunting good coffees like buying lottery; we may spend a lot of money but sometimes not all of the tickets are winners. So, if some people out there tell me that we are lucky, I would tell them this is the result of a long and costly process that sometimes pays off.
Question: What is your goal in the near future for this specific SCAA contest?
Answer: To win, we want to keep thriving getting number one position. We believe that this recognition is a tangible result to show to our customers like a certification that shows we excel in our endeavor of offering a good product. With this recognition we expect to have new business in the future for the specialty side as well as the standard good quality coffees. It is also good to have this recognition each time we introduce ourselves to new clients.
Question: Do you start the process of specialty coffees just because of the international contest such as coffee of the year SCAA competition?
Answer: No, we start the process of selecting specialty coffees 15 years ago, we sent our best samples all over the world to our clients but we did not receive a positive answer. I guess the market was not prepared to embrace this new trend at that time. In addition, communication and information were not available or not well developed. I would like to add that quality changes year to year due to variables such as climate or cultural practices, so new and all specialty coffees could be considered as unique.
Question: Do you believe that the specialty coffee segment is growing as many studies and organizations impl?
Answer: I have to say that growth of this segment was evidently positive before the financial crisis, and then it went downward. I guess consumers are willing to shift to inexpensive coffee choices as crises persist. Another variable to take into account on our side as exporters is the high average price of the Colombian Coffee, this makes it hard to mark up a specialty coffee from Colombia compared with offerings from other producers countries. In addition, traceability and specialty coffee must go together.
Question: What does sustainability mean for you and your company?
Answer: It is the market that is requesting and driving this type of coffees. However, not all the coffees could be sold as certified even though sometimes the coffee is already been certified with any seal such as Fair Trade. The sustainability is not always in need of a seal, they are several projects or direct relationship between roasters and growers that could be labeled as sustainable practices. For instance, a long and direct business relationship could improve the quality, livelihood, environment and income of the growers without having any seal in between. Finally, coffees sold by volume and specialty coffees usually sold in small lots are two different type of businesses.
Question: Do you believe the new strategy of the Colombian Coffee Federation to increase the volume of production in the coming years would decrease the availability of specialty coffees?
Answer: No, I believe it would be even more opportunities to find more special coffees if that happen. I think the coffee market is always bigger that we believe it is — there are always new opportunities and room for new special coffees. Finally, I believe shortages of Colombia coffees in general would diminish but not in the short run.
