- PRF El Salvador will take place March 16 & 17, 2023
- The event is set to welcome attendees from all around the world
- More than 25 lectures and panel discussions are already confirmed
Producer & Roaster Forum (PRF) has announced its first speakers and panellists for its upcoming event, PRF El Salvador.
Set to be held on March 16 & 17 at the Salamanca Exhibition Centre in San Salvador, the event will bring together thousands of coffee professionals from around the world including producers, roasters, green coffee traders, baristas, and more.
Like previous events, the focus will be on providing a platform for the key topics and issues affecting the global coffee industry with the aim of putting coffee producers at the centre of important industry conversations.
This year, PRF will host a diverse range of speakers and panellists – you can learn more about them below.

Lectures at PRF El Salvador
Just like in Medellín for PRF Colombia last year, PRF El Salvador will feature a range of industry-leading speakers who will give lectures to thousands of attendees.
Take a look at the confirmed lectures below:
- Creating a pathway for selling ultra-premium coffees (José Guzman – Kofra Specialty Coffee Roasters, UK)
- Data & green coffee quality: Why is it so important? (Darina Onoprienko – Agrivero.ai, Germany)
- Micro to macro: How to scale a specialty roastery (Rodrigo Jaeger – Café Señor K, Chile)
- What are the purchasing priorities of Chinese roasters? (Lewis Harding – Coffee Exchange, China)
- Exotic processing: Leveraging biochemistry to produce experimental coffees (Wilton Benitez – Varietales Finos SAS, Colombia)
- Key steps for managing quality control (Dulce Barrera – Bella Vista Coffee, Guatemala)
- It’s time to change the standards for how we market and sell coffee (Martin Mayorga – Mayorga Coffee, US)
- How can El Salvador differentiate and grow sales in Europe & the UK? (Dale Harris – Hasbean, UK)
- The evolving coffee market in the US (Matt Swenson – Nestlé, US)
- Coffee prices: What happened in 2022 and what can be expected in 2023? (Albert Scalla – StoneX, US)
- A roaster’s guide to entering the Eastern European market (Zoran Stanojevic – Kafeterija&Love&Brands DOO, Serbia)
- How direct relationships lead to improved quality (Eduardo Choza – Mayorga Coffee, US)
- Reviewing the challenges which direct trade roasters are facing (Mohamad Merhi – Cypher Urban Roasters, UAE)
- Addressing the North-South divide in the coffee supply chain (Sam Corra – ONA Coffee, Australia)
- More than a market trend: Why cold brew quality matters (Julia Leach – Toddy, US)
- Circular economy: Implementing scalable coffee packaging solutions (Mark Zhou – MTPak Coffee, China)
- Entrepreneurship in coffee: How can we encourage more young people to join the coffee industry? (Luis Eduardo López – Quality Coffee Assurance Association, Colombia)

Panels at PRF El Salvador
Alongside the keynote speeches and lectures at PRF El Salvador, plenty of other industry leaders will also be participating in panels. These will discuss the key issues across the coffee sector, and hone in on where the industry is going.
- How can we make specialty coffee less elitist?
- Lead panellist: Jonathan Moral (Café de Finca, Spain)
- Guests: Estella Zuleta Carmona (Deep Café and Roastery, UAE), Rodrigo Giammattei (Café Caté, El Salvador)
- Winning the World Barista Championship: Who’s involved and how?
- Lead panellist: Federico Bolanos (Alquimia Coffee, El Salvador)
- Guests: Carlos Pola (Finca San Antonio & Las Brisas, El Salvador), Alejandro Mendez (2011 WBC Champion & 4 Monkeys Coffee Roasters, El Salvador)
- How to connect with the Saudi green buyer
- Lead panellist: Osamah Alawwam (Roasting House, Saudi Arabia)
- Guests: Yousef Alzayer (Leanitai Coffee, Saudi Arabia), Miguel Candel (Saudi Coffee, Saudi Arabia)
- The role of women in the Salvadoran coffee sector
- Lead panellist: María Pacas (Café Pacas, El Salvador)
- Guests: María Elena Botto (International Women’s Coffee Association & Women’s Coffee Alliance of El Salvador, El Salvador), Ana María Schmidt (Finca Montealegre, El Salvador)
- Customising coffee education and training for Central America
- Lead panellist: Johanna de Rodríguez (Academia Barista Pro, El Salvador)
- Guests: Jonathan Rodríguez (Academia Barista Pro, El Salvador), Carlos Guerra (Café San Rafael, Honduras)
- What is a buyer looking for? How can you add value to both yourself and the buyer?
- Lead panellist: Ryan Garrick (Watchhouse, UK)
- Guest: Jordan Montgomery (Fjord Coffee Roasters, Germany)
- Are we defining coffee quality incorrectly?
- Lead panellist: Tony Dreyfuss (Metropolis Coffee, US)
- Guests: Nicole Battefeld-Montgomery (Rancilio Group DE, Germany), Jorge Raúl Rivera (Finca Santa Rosa, El Salvador)
- Reviewing Middle Eastern specialty coffee trends
- Lead panellist: Cleia Junqueira (Coffee Planet, UAE)
- Guests: Anthony Bedoyan (Golden Goose, UAE), Mostafa El-Saiid (Al Fayrouz, Egypt)
- Scaling specialty coffee consumption through relationships with fast food chains
- Lead panellist: Edgar Cabrera (Thrive Farmers, US)
- Guest: Kenneth Lander (Thrive Farmers, US)
- How can roasters add more value for producers?
- Lead panellist: Jeffrey Chean (Groundwork Coffee, US)
- Guests: Adam Kline (Coffee Unified, US), Sara Corrales (La Tostadería, Nicaragua)
PRF El Salvador is set to be the biggest edition of the event yet. International and local tickets are now available to purchase.
To watch speeches and presentations from PRF Colombia, visit the PRF YouTube channel.