BOGOTA – Under the motto “Colombia, land of diversity”, ExpoEspeciales 2014 is taking place in the Green Pavilion of the International Convention Center Plaza Mayor of Medellin until October 5th. The international specialty coffee fair, which kicked off on October 2nd, is held simultaneously with Maridaje 2014.
ExpoEspeciales is known for being Latin America’s leading specialty coffee fair. As part of its value added strategy, the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) annually organizes the fair in order to promote and give visibility to the production of high quality coffees from different Colombian coffee growing regions.
The event integrates the coffee value chain and brings together producers, traders, visitors and coffee lovers in one same space. ExpoEspeciales is an attractive scenario for both Latin American consumers and professionals, and for Asian, North American and European buyers.
Besides being a showcase for coffees from different Colombian regions, the event is a propitious scenario for displaying the coffee industry’s trends and innovations in the domestic and international arena. ExpoEspeciales favours the exchange of knowledge and commercial, cultural and academic experiences among its attendees
IX Colombian Barista Championship and IV National Tasters Championship
The IX Colombian Barista Championship and the IV National Tasters Championship is taking place under the frame of ExpoEspeciales 2014. The selected barista champion will represent Colombia in the 2015 World Barista Championship in Seattle, USA.
Academic program
A rich academic program allows participants to learn about relevant matters related to the Colombian coffee industry such as the diversity of Café de Colombia, the FNC’s specialty coffees strategy and market trends in Asia and North America. Additionally, specialists from Cenicafé, which were recently recognized by the international scientific community as world leaders in innovation, will share several developments including the Ecomill technology for washing coffee, different fermentation processes and sustainability initiatives.
There will also be a discussion group regarding products that are protected with denominations of origin (coffee, Alicante nougat or tequila). Thanks to the support of the Colombian Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, experts in denomination of origin coming from different countries will lead the meeting.
The traditional Q Encounter “Encuentro Q”, which is co-organized by the FNC and the Coffee Quality Institute, and the annual meeting of the roaster industry under the Drink Coffee Program, are other events that enrich ExpoEspeciales’ academic agenda.
History
ExpoEspeciales was created to strengthen the coffee industry and invigorate the business revolving around coffee. The first ExpoEspeciales fair took place in 2008 in the city of Neiva.
With great success and an increasing number of attendees, each year ExpoEspeciales promotes a different Colombian coffee region. Ibague (2009), Pasto (2010), Bogota (2011 and 2013) and Popayan (2012) have been the hosts of ExpoEspeciales in previous years. In 2011, when the World Barista Championship was held under the frame of ExpoEspeciales, the fair brought together more than 19,000 attendees.
