NOVEMBER SUBSCRIPTION
Minani, Rwanda
After a recent conversation with the CEO of the green coffee importing/exporting company, Caravela, I came to realise something vital. We at Made of Many are one of the few roasters that make sure that relationships are at the forefront of how we buy coffee.
A big issue facing the producers in the coffee world is the lack of certainty and the economy-of-scale of a small farm, which is the case for most coffee growers worldwide. They can't grow enough coffee to be profitable because they don't have enough land. And they won't risk buying more land and planting trees if the market stays volatile without contracts for the demand in which they are the supply.
We as roasters need to make sure coffee has a future, and the only way for that to really exist is to make sure we are giving the producers the certainty to grow the coffee and also the financial incentive to do so. The age of the average coffee grower is almost retirement age, and in many cases the inheriting kids have no desire to continue the painstaking efforts of coffee growing.
This brings us to Minani, a farmer with three contracts to supply roasters in Australia. Each of us has been buying his coffee for 4 years+, and we have no plan on stopping, with the next shipment being harvested and prepared now!
We always plan ahead and purchase coffees with contracts in place to show the importers/exporters/growers a commitment to the trade relationship. The other way to buy coffee is just to buy it once it has been imported. This works for roasters as there is so little risk, but that means the risk has to be absorbed by other parties. For us it is important that we choose to take the necessary risk to ensure coffee producers feel there is a future in growing coffee.
Minani is a coffee that is bought with our philosophy and it shows that all parties can benefit from the relationship if everyone comes to the table.
Take care as always!
Kindest regards,
Ben