How Can Long-Term Relationships Increase Sustainability at Origin?
“We need to think that the coffee ecosystem is composed of 20 million farmers,” Michele Cannone tells me. As Head of Global Marketing Foodservice at...
Sustainability
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Recent Articles
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February 26, 2026
How can we encourage more producers to grow specialty coffee?
Key takeaways Global specialty coffee demand is rising, pressuring producers to improve quality. Ageing farmer populations threaten the continuity of coffee production worldwide. Long-term buyer relationships enable producers to innovate and invest in farms. Direct trade and blockchain platforms help producers access fairer, wider markets. In its latest report, the USDA predicts that both global coffee production and consumption will reach record highs in 2025/26. Production is estimated at 178.8… read more
Key takeaways Global specialty coffee demand is rising, pressuring producers to improve quality. Ageing farmer populations threaten the continuity of coffee production worldwide. Long-term buyer relationships enable producers to innovate and invest in farms. Direct trade and blockchain platforms help… read more
Coffee Barometer 2018: It’s Time for Less Talk, More Action
As I read the last sentence of the 2018 Coffee Barometer report, it left me thinking of the Honduran phrase “tilin-tilin y nada de paletas.”...
Volcán De Fuego & How The Coffee Community Can Support Guatemala
75 Guatemalans have died. More are missing. And thousands have been displaced, forced to leave behind their homes and crops. We know Guatemala for its...
3 Things a Coffee Farmer Would Like You to Do
Coffee is not just coffee. Our favorite beverage can be our morning pick-me-up, a precious moment to ourselves after work, a long chat with an...
Green Coffee Pricing Transparency Is Critical (And Complicated)
There are real concerns about the future of specialty coffee. And one of the most pressing is the incredibly low incomes earned by coffee producers....
Forward vs Spot Coffee Buying: The Pros & Cons
Do you know what coffee you’ll be selling next season? Or will your team be ringing around, requesting samples, negotiating prices, and hoping that you...
What a Coffee Producer Thinks When Harvest Begins
With the approach of the coffee harvest comes mixed feelings. Many producers, like my family, are excited to see the result of our year’s hard...
The Reality of Producing Specialty Coffee on Tiny Farms
Imagine owning a farm so small that you cannot receive practical help – even though, with the low profit margins and high costs of coffee...
A Producer’s Guide to Choosing a Processing Method
Choosing the best coffee processing method can be like an artist choosing the best paints for their next masterpiece. Should it be watercolours, oil, or...
Why Some Farmers Struggle to Produce Specialty Coffee
About 70 countries produce coffee, but not all of them are able to effectively engage with the specialty market. In some, producers struggle while growing...
How Can Used Coffee Grounds Create a Greener Industry?
How many used coffee grounds do you put in a bin every single day? How about every week? Or year? If you compost or otherwise...
Micro Lot vs Macro Lot: What’s The Difference?
There are some pretty flexible definitions in coffee, and micro lots and macro lots (or community lots, as I like to refer to them) are...
Support Fight Against Cervical Cancer in Coffee Communities
Picture coffee communities at origin: what do you see? Lush landscapes, coffee trees full of beautiful dark red cherries, and hard-working families? The one thing...
Coca to Coffee in Colombia: How FARC Peace Deal Affects Farmers
Last year, a peace agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC rebels went into effect, ending over 50 years of warfare but also signalling...
Creating Schools & Jobs in Honduras’ Coffee-Farming Communities
The view of Honduras from 2,000 meters in the sky is stunning. In lush pine tree forests on the highest mountains, coffee producers can find...
The Complicated Role of Money in Specialty Coffee
Not all producers have the same access to the specialty market – and it’s time we talk about this issue. The specialty coffee industry is...