Production & Trade
"Direct trade" is a founding principle of specialty coffee. However, as many across the sector hailed it, supply chain intermediaries have received widespread criticism
For many, hand-picking coffee represents the pinnacle of quality. However, with most of the people that pick the coffee lacking basic human necessities and social security, is it really that glamorous?
For various practical and cultural reasons, farmers don't tend to drink their own coffee. However, this is starting to change, and it could be for the betterment of the industry that it is.
For many years, coffee varieties have been artificially developed to increase production yields, improve quality, combat plant diseases, and adapt to different environmental conditions. But can a single entity "own" one?
Digital sales channels have become crucial for roasters, but coffee producers have started stepping into the digital ring, too.
Saudi Arabia has been investing massive resources into its coffee industry, as part of an effort to diversify away from oil.
Over the last decade, the coffee has become increasingly consolidated. It's therefore an important question to ask – what happens to a specialty coffee brand when they get acquired?
Coffee roasters' sustainability initiatives have become a common theme in the specialty sector – but should we reconsider how effective they are?
There has been a longstanding conversation about how to objectively define green coffee quality. And as pricing mechanisms rely on a quantifiable measurement of quality, this represents an issue that is challenging to resolve.
Coffee production may be fuelling Ethiopia's civil war – as the government uses it to bank more US dollars to buy foreign arms
Despite the C price fluctuating over the last few years – with some comparatively significant highs – many smallholder coffee farmers didn’t see a rise in earnings. As such, it's become clear that higher prices is not the sole solution.
Long-term trading relationships and innovation are two central tenets of specialty coffee - but can coffee farmers have both?
Sri Lanka continues to be associated with tea production, largely driven by decades of government investment and policy directed towards infrastructure and development in the sector. However, the country could soon become a notable coffee origin.
In May, a crucial data point used to gauge the health of the coffee industry was lost - the GCA stopped publishing coffee warehouse stocks data
Kenyan coffee is under threat from profiteering actors in the supply chain. Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua's reforms hope to change that.
The Q grader programme is dedicated to evaluating the sensory qualities of coffee. But when you can't decide what "quality" means, what happens to Q graders?
Politically speaking, EU deforestation laws have become a hot topic, and the coffee industry could suffer.
Selling coffee as cherry has become increasingly popular in coffee-growing regions around the world. But is this shift good for coffee producers?
As the coffee industry reacts to the effects of climate change, it could be argued it is taking an adaptive approach, rather than a mitigative one.
Growing demand is driving robusta prices up, while arabica prices remain low. But is there any chance that the market prices for arabica and robusta will equalise?