HAMBURG, Germany– COTECA Coffee, Tea and Cocoa Global Industry Expo will be held for the third time from 24 to 26 September 2014. This is the meeting point for the international coffee, tea and cocoa industries.
Like the two previous events (2010 and 2012), this year’s COTECA will also have a trade conference running in parallel, with leading experts from all three sectors.
The focus at this two-day conference will be on analysis of current trends and market developments, identification of current and future challenges, and examination of possible ways of dealing with problems.
Conference kick-off with the cocoa world
The COTECA conference will start on Wednesday 24 September with three eminent speakers from the world of cocoa. Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director of the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), based in London, will give an overview of current developments and problems in the international cocoa market.
Gricha Safarian, Managing Director of Puratos Grand-Place Vietnam, will give a presentation on how the current market requirements in Asia are being met.
He will cover the path from cocoa beans to chocolate as a consumer product in the Asian markets, with a focus on Vietnam.
Beate Weiskopf, Project Coordinator at GIZ (Germany’s international cooperation services organisation) will present to this international audience the “Sustainable Cocoa Forum”, an initiative launched in 2012 by the German chocolate and confectionery industry.
Developments in the international coffee sector
The conference for the international coffee trade will start on the Wednesday afternoon. The introductory presentation will be given by Ross Colbert, Global Strategist – Beverages at Rabobank, New York. Rabobank publishes a comprehensive report each year on hot beverage consumption trends worldwide.
His presentation will cover the special developments in coffee, tea and cocoa consumption not only in the industrialised nations, but also in fast developing emerging countries.
He will be followed by leading experts such as Dan Bolton, Managing Editor of STiR tea & coffee industry bi-monthly magazine, and Dr. Martin Bussmann, BASF, analysing the global trend of Single Serve Coffee in Capsules or Pads from various different angles.
The main focus will be on subjects like “Changes in consumer habits”, “Requirements for grinding in the production process”, and new sustainable solutions in packaging single portions.
The challenges faced by the international coffee market now and in the future will be discussed with Maja Wallengren from Mexico and Carlos Brando from Brazil, two recognised international experts from the coffee growing countries.
Maja Wallengren is an independent coffee analyst with a close-up view of what is happening in the Central and South American growing countries; she has been passing on her expert knowledge for many years in articles published in a range of international coffee trade magazines.
Carlos Brando is a Director and Partner at P&A International Marketing, Brazil, a consultant to leading companies, cooperatives, non-profit organisations and government agencies not only in Brazil but worldwide.
A wide range of presentations on tea
On Thursday 25 September the conference focus is on tea. It includes current trends and changing consumer habits, quality control and product safety, tea growing in South America and Africa, and innovative marketing approaches to attract young people to tea consumption.
Jane Pettigrew, a tea expert from the UK, gives an introduction to the latest consumption trends and developments in the world of tea, followed by Marco Sinram from tea wholesaler Wollenhaupt with an analysis of risk management in the purchase of china tea.
Product safety and sustainability is the main subject of the presentation on packaging by Neil Banerjee from Innovia Films, a UK packaging company. After the lunch break, there will be fascinating insights into tea growing in South America and Africa.
For example, Heroldo Secco Junior, representing a Brazilian mate producer will present the potentials for mate in the global market. Continuing the logical chain from the tea bush to the consumer’s cup, the COTECA Conference will close with two presentations on marketing.
Patrick Ulmer from the Berlin-based start-up 5 CUPS and some sugar will explain how an online shop with an innovative marketing idea can appeal to a young target audience.
The two days of concentrated expertise and lively discussions on all aspects of coffee, tea and cocoa make the COTECA 2014 the international meeting point for the trade in autumn 2014.
