From October 17th to the 20th of 2019 Bogota, the capital of Colombia hosted, what is becoming, one of the most important coffee expos in the world. I have had the pleasure to visit the fair (Cafes de Colombia) three times in the past. This has been by far the best event ever produced by the organisers.

Mostly funded by the FNC (National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia) Cafes de Colombia 2019 hosted the Colombian barista championships, the National filtered coffees championship, the Colombian Coffee roasters Championship and the National Cupping Championship.

For 3 days it was a complete party under the roof of one of the main buildings at the international exhibition centre (Corferias) in Bogota. What really grabbed my attention this time was the staggering amount of coffee growers participating in this edition of the expo. Coffee farmers and the communities around them are starting to understand the vital roll they play in the chain of international coffee trade.

For us, specialty coffee roasters, origins are the foundation of our businesses. Quality and consistency depend inherently from the crop and all its attributes. We can only unlock what is hidden in the bean by the farmer.

Following our amazing experience at the expo in Bogota we landed in Armenia’s airport in El Eden. Right in the middle of Colombia’s coffee axis we went to one of our favorite places on earth… Finca La Pradera. Owned by the Arcila Family this is one of the HQs of Cofinet. They are specialty coffee distributors deeply involved with direct trading, sustainability, both environmental and social, and premium quality. We have been working together since our beginnings. Every time we visit we feel right at home.

This particular year our visit to Cofinet’s HQs hold something extra-special. Colombian Connection Coffee was officially starting a direct trade relationship with Cesar Buesaquillo. One of the youngest farmers recruited by Cofinet in its high quality and sustainability program.

Cesar’s extended fermentation, honeys and natural is the the responsible for our Single origin of Line “LA BOMBA”

By experience we have had the privilege of witnessing how empowering it is when a Farmer is made aware of the great impact they have in the coffee chain. Cesar is one of our associates, perhaps one of the most important. The understanding of such responsibility pushes us both to be better and to strive for our best. It is only fair and respectful as business partners to exchange the right pay for the right product.

Globally, the specialty coffee industry is facing an important challenge. Year after year more young farmers abandon coffee production due to low prices, lack of guarantees and constant pressure from macro-distributors and commodity brokers. They often move to other crops like oranges, avocados or even live-stock.

This is exactly why transparency and ethical practices are so important for the specialty coffee community. We can not tolerate the misuse of such term: “Specialty Coffee” while most coffee roasters keep on purchasing low-grade commodity green beans for their espresso blends (Biggest percentage of sales). Such businesses only invest in ethical coffees to maintain their high end lines (Smallest percentage of sales) in a marketing exercise. Such common practice is putting the future of quality coffee under threat.

The industry is full of pretenders offering good quality Singe Origins, which we all know are sold in lower quantities and often bought from big coffee brokers, altogether with state of the art equipment supplying Espresso Blends at prices way to low to resist. When one knows the world of coffee trade it is obvious to spot where the savings are: Right in the espresso blend which accounts for at least 80% of a coffee roaster revenue… Please, do not expect any high quality, ethical or sustainable coffees inside that kilogram bag but make no mistake in knowing for sure that such amazing low price is only contributing to the collapse of quality coffee production, the wellbeing of coffee farmers, the environment and their communities. We are happy to know that a very significant number of coffee roasters and independent green bean suppliers are committed to Specialty Coffee and what such term truly represents. It is up to cafe operators and the consumer to keep supporting companies with such values. It is important then to get informed, to pass beyond the perfectly edited images of facebook and Instagram and get to know the real origin of what we are purchasing.

We are happy to see businesses thriving and growing but not when it is at the expense of the most vulnerable, yet, the real heroes and most important pieces of the coffee puzzle: The Farmers and their communities.

Cesar X Vela