In April of this year, the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) launched a survey for the new Roaster/Retailer Financial Benchmarking Study: a business tool that offers roasters and retailers a way to measure their company performance against the objective industry standard. The idea is to deliver business information to people and companies in the specialty coffee …
This fall, sustainability leaders and passionate advocates from across the coffee value chain will gather in Guatemala City to participate in Avance, the first sustainability conference hosted by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). This inaugural event will be held on October 11-12, 2017, at the headquarters of Anacafé, Guatemala’s national coffee association. The two-day event …
By Rosemary Trent Producing a great cup of coffee amid global threats is growing challenge for the world’s coffee growers. In 2003, the SCA Sustainability Council created the Sustainability Award to promote, encourage and celebrate the efforts of those who serve as role models and innovators in the coffee industry. Yearly applications for the prestigious …
By Kim Elena Ionescu In the early days of 2017, the SCA sent out a survey to all our members on the subject of sustainability. The survey asked questions about challenges to the sustainability of the coffee industry, about how respondents interpret sustainability in the context of their businesses, as well as what the role …
Many of the world’s coffee genebanks are underfunded and under threat, yet the future of coffee depends on protecting these precious genetic resources. So what would a better global conservation system look like in the future and how can the industry support it? In a humid tropical forest that shrouds a sacred mountain on the …
We know we know coffee, and we think we know our customers, but for the past several years, the Specialty Coffee Association has been determined to parse the complicated relationship that consumers have with the specialty coffee industry. These continuing efforts aim not only to better understand our current share of the market, but also …
By Kim Elena Ionescu The year was 2005, Expo was in Seattle, and the first sustainability award was given by the SCAA to a project of Starbucks and Portland Roasting named Las Nubes Sustainable Coffee. Twelve years later, we’re back in Seattle and it’s another especially significant year for the Sustainability Award. In 2017, the …
By Kim Elena Ionescu The creation of the Sustainability Center is a milestone for the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) and for the entire specialty coffee community. We know from surveys, volunteer leaders, and everyday experience that this community is full of passionate, knowledgeable, active people who pursue sustainability every day and at every stage …
As part of its mission, SCA is actively involved in sustainability and looks to its members to take leadership roles in sustainable practices within the specialty coffee sector. With this in mind, the Sustainability Award was created in 2003 to promote, encourage and honor the efforts of those serving as role models through sustainable projects in …
By Kim Elena Ionescu Almost eight years ago, a piece of trivia about boiled potatoes completely changed the way I prepared my coffee (not to mention a bunch of other foods). A colleague of mine approached me at the lunch table, and related having heard that heating the water to boil a potato required more …