BOGOTA – ExpoEspeciales, Latin America’s leading specialty coffee fair which ended recently in Medellín, Colombia, once again allowed visitors to get up to date information on main trends in the segment of high-quality coffees.
The fair attracted visitors from North America (USA and Canada), Europe (Germany, Spain and Belgium, among others) and Japan, as well as from emerging markets of growing consumption, such as China and South Korea and new markets such as Lithuania. During the first Business Matchmaking Forum, organized by the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) and the Proexport governmental agency, 528 face-to-face meetings took place, concreting sales of $1.6 million and an additional projected $10.8 million for specialty coffee producers seeking direct sales to clients in all the world.
It is worth noting that this macro Business Matchmaking Forum is part of an alliance between the two entities to train and facilitate access of producers interested in directly selling their coffee to new markets. The process includes 54 seminars and training workshops for coffee growers that have been conducted in 10 producing regions throughout the year. A total of 7,000 farmers are expected to have been trained on issues of international trade by late 2014 thanks to this partnership.
QUALITY AND DIFFERENTIATION WERE KEY MESSAGES OF THE ACADEMIC AGENDA – As part of the academic agenda of the fair, it should be noted that experts from different countries agreed to highlight Denominations of Origin (DO), based on production and marketing of high-quality products, as positive development models for the benefits they bring to producers and their regions.
In other conferences it was also emphasized that quality and differentiation, such as those promoted by Café de Colombia, are adequate and successful strategies.
IMPORTANT BUSINESS CONTACTS – The fair, which hosted an interesting trade show on 1,200 square meters, allowed the 71 exhibitors to reach big businesses, from brand positioning, through sale of equipment and supplies to materialization of large and interesting businesses in Colombia and abroad.
“ExpoEspeciales and the Coffee-Growing Women Program stand were an excellent showcase to display our product, gain customers and also learn from colleagues,” acknowledged Rosa Elena López, a producer of Aguadas, Caldas, and Mucafe, an association of 30 coffee-growing women.
“For us and our machinery, which was not well known in this area due to lack of representation, this fair opens important expectations,” said Juan Carlos Melo, from Ingesec, a manufacturer and distributor of equipment for coffee wet processing.
Similarly, Colombia´s Promotion Program for Domestic Coffee Consumption –Toma- Café assembly updated members of the chain on trends and evolution of the program.
SIGNING FOR QUALITY – On the other hand, the FNC and the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) signed, in the framework of the fair, a memorandum of understanding that encompasses three basic points: 1. Certification of Q coffee, so that those with the highest qualifications, i.e., more than 85 points, may be marketed to buyers interested in them with important quality premiums. 2. Courses for coffee cuppers who in the end can graduate as Q graders, and 3. Training of producers on quality.
NEW COLOMBIAN CUPPING AND BARISTA CHAMPIONS – In the IV National Coffee Cupper Championship, for which 81 tasters (76% more than the 46 from last year) were registered, a woman won for the first time. From the municipality of Riosucio, Caldas, Angelica María Arroyave is the new national cupping champion. It also should be noted that the first and second place were occupied by young people of coffee institutions. The first one from the Alto Occidente (High West) Coffee Growers Cooperative and the second one from Colombia’s freeze-dried coffee factory, Buencafe.
On the other hand, thanks to his skill, creativity in his preparations and wide knowledge about coffee, Diego Fernando Campo was elected as the new national barista champion. On behalf of Amor Perfecto, this Tolima 24-year-old achieved first place with his preparations (four espressos, four cappuccinos and four design or author drinks in each round), which impressed the jury of the 9th National Barista Championship.
