For many coffee consumers, it’s incredibly important to have a range of origins to choose from. Each producing country has its own distinct terroir, which naturally impacts the sensory characteristics of coffee.
Given that we often base our coffee purchasing decisions on flavour, this makes it even more vital that roasters provide a wide variety of options.
But a broader selection of coffees not only benefits consumers. In addition to providing more support to producers – especially smallholders – sourcing from different origins also helps to protect the diversity of the coffee industry against climate-induced issues. Moreover, with the upcoming European Union deforestation regulation about to impact producers, traders, and roasters, offering more diverse and varied coffees has never been more important.
To find out more, I spoke to several traders and roasters. Read on for more of their insight.
You may also like our article on how roasters can plan their menus when prices rise.
Why origin variety is so important
In recent years, more and more roasters have started to source an increasingly diverse range of coffees. These not only include different origins, but also varieties (or even species), processing methods, cup scores, and price points.
Inacio Teixeira is the Managing Director at InterAmerican Coffee (IAC) in Hamburg, Germany – an importer which offers roasters a wide selection of specialty green coffee. He explains why coffee diversity is essential for a roaster of any size.
“Sourcing from different producing countries means offering more exciting and unique flavour profiles, as well as more traditional coffees,” he says. “Roasters want to offer their customers as wide of a range of coffees as possible.”
This is an inherent aspect of specialty coffee. Roasters and baristas strive to showcase the full spectrum of flavour and aroma through different roast profiles and brewing methods – which allows them to build brand loyalty and attract new customers.
Fritz Bernet, Jörg Scheuffler, and Julia van der Maat are roasters at Bergbrand, a specialty coffee roaster in Nuremberg, Germany.
“Our industry is about enjoying a diverse range of coffees because each one has its own distinctive flavours and characteristics,” Julia says.
Diversity is key
Naturally, there is also diversity among consumer preferences.
“Some people want to experience the most interesting and distinct flavour possible, while others may be looking for a more balanced coffee,” Fritz says. In turn, roasters need to make sure they cater to the needs of all types of customers.
Jennifer Roberts is the COO of Atlas Coffee Importers, a green coffee importer company in Washington state, US. She agrees, and notes that sourcing different-sized lots also has its benefits.
“We like to see roasters who are able to source both bulk lots for consistent blends and smaller, specially-processed micro-lots from the same producer,” she says. “This helps the farmer to sell both volume and to get a premium and additional recognition for the extra work put into their highest quality offerings. This can also be a way to experiment with different farm management and processing techniques on a smaller scale.”
Supporting smallholders to invest in production
Smallholders exist all across the Bean Belt, but certain producing countries dominate the global market. Over the last five years, Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, Indonesia, and Ethiopia have accounted for around 73% of global coffee production, so when roasters source coffee from other origins, they also support the growth of smaller coffee-producing communities.
Ruben Scholz is the Group COO of Neumann Kaffee Gruppe – a multinational green coffee service group. He explains that many smallholder producers heavily rely on specific buyers or markets. In Honduras, for example, he says the coffee sector is the country’s second-largest source of income.
“Producers are completely dependent on customers continuing to buy from them,” he adds. “If the market disappears, the Honduran coffee industry will start to decline and younger generations will look for new jobs.”
Given that an estimated 25 million smallholders grow up to a staggering 80% of the world’s coffee supply, yet 5.5 million live below the international poverty line of US $3.20 per day, supporting these farmers is crucial to the success of the wider industry.
Gloria Pedroza is Head of NKG Quality Service, a green coffee quality consulting unit within Neumann Kaffee Gruppe.
“If consumers aren’t willing to pay more money for quality coffee, then it will be difficult for many farmers to continue growing it,” she tells me. “In many countries, younger generations don’t want to work in agriculture, which is understandable as generating a living income can be challenging.”
In certain producing countries, smallholders account for the vast majority of export volumes. For instance, according to the World Resources Institute, there are an estimated 1.7 million smallholder coffee farmers in Uganda alone, and many of them are aged 55 and above – which makes it less viable to carry out intensive physical labour on a daily basis.
Easing pressure from supply chain issues
Over the past few years, roasters the world over have grappled with supply chain issues. These include:
“Curious customers appreciate an ever-changing selection, as it allows them to discover new beans,” Jörg says. “However, catering to customers who prioritise consistency can be challenging, especially if a particular coffee becomes unavailable.”
By sourcing coffees from more origins, roasters will be less affected by supply chain disruptions in specific regions.
“For example, when replicating a blend, roasters can substitute a missing coffee with a similar one from another region or country to ensure they meet demand and maintain their overall supply,” Julia explains.
Ruben agrees, saying: “The various crises in the coffee market – including climate change, extreme weather, crop failures, supply chain problems, and new regulations – prove that it would be negligent to focus on just a few origins.”
Minimising risk
The climate crisis is an ever-growing threat to the coffee industry. A 2023 study in the journal PLOS Climate found that rising temperatures caused by global warming are likely to lead to “ongoing systemic shocks” to coffee production, with some countries affected more than others.
“Diversity in origin and quality is at risk here – something that neither consumers or producers want,” Ruben adds. “Our strength at Neumann Kaffee Gruppe lies in our long-term relationships with customers, suppliers, and all other parties along the supply chain.”
Ultimately, by sourcing coffee from suppliers who work with partners in a variety of different producing countries, roasters can better manage any inevitable supply chain disruption.
“NKG operates in nearly 30 countries and has a vast network of agents and representatives to connect local producers with international buyers,” Fritz explains. “This allows them to source coffee from a wide variety of regions, providing roasters access to diverse origins and flavour profiles.”
Why addressing threats to coffee diversity is vital
Although there are some 120 identified species of coffee, arabica and robusta make up the vast majority of the market at around 60% and 40%, respectively. Many studies emphasise arabica’s vulnerability in particular – claiming that as much as 50% of current arabica-producing land could be unsuitable by 2050 due to climate change.
To add to this, many small farmers and coffee-producing countries depend heavily on single markets and large traders to buy their coffee, which puts them at more risk of economic vulnerability.
The situation will likely worsen with the upcoming EU Deforestation Regulation (or EUDR). The new law will require companies to prove that imported commodities (including coffee) aren’t sourced from supply chains where deforestation occurs.
Under the EUDR, countries will be classified at low, standard, or high risk of deforestation. Many have criticised the impending regulations as disproportionately impacting smaller farms who are much less likely to have the resources and capital to prove compliance.
European traders and roasters may find it easier to buy green coffee from larger farms that are located further away from forests rather than from “riskier” smallholder farms.
“For example, there are projects in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest that promote shade-grown coffee as a means to provide income to local communities, while assuring biodiversity corridors are kept intact,” Ruben explains. “However, under an EUDR risk assessment, any coffee coming from this area will always flag a high risk of deforestation and require cost-intensive traceability and monitoring systems to prove compliance.”
How EUDR could impact smallholders
The EUDR mandates extensive paperwork and data collection to confirm a coffee’s deforestation-free status, which can be difficult and costly for smaller producers with limited resources. But if smaller farms cannot comply, they may lose access to one of the world’s largest coffee markets that accounts for 30% of global coffee consumption.
Moreover, these new regulations are already causing shifts in demand for some producing countries, as Ruben explains.
“In its recent harvest, for example, Ethiopia experienced dramatically slowed demand from Europe,” he says. “Overall, Europe is likely to see higher prices and coffees coming from fewer origins, reducing the diversity in the cup and creating future supply risks, especially given climate change.
“However, producers can’t progress alone,” he adds. “It requires joint effort, such as the NKG Bloom initiative.”
NKG Bloom works with over 80,000 coffee farmers worldwide to provide access to financing, training, and improved infrastructure. It also ensures farmers are aware of sustainable production practices to meet criteria like those of the EUDR – ensuring they don’t lose access to markets that they heavily depend on for income.
Collaboration is key to successful diversification
Working together to achieve greater diversity in coffee offerings benefits everyone in the supply chain. One of the main advantages is greater transparency and traceability, which more and more consumers have started to demand.
“Consumers are looking for something special,” Inacio says. “This can be exceptional quality, but also as much information as possible about coffee origin or the producer.”
Jörg says partnering with traders like Neumann Kaffee Gruppe allows roasters of any size to build long-term relationships with producers, and even attend origin trips to meet them in person.
“This transparency helps roasters tell the story of their coffee, highlighting the producers and the conditions under which the coffee was grown,” Fritz tells me. “This connection can strengthen the relationship between roasters and producers, which more and more consumers appreciate.”
Smaller farmers can also leverage this transparency and traceability to differentiate their coffees in the market, but ultimately need support to do this successfully.
“New and creative processing techniques also make this possible,” Gloria says. “However, there must be a market that values these products and pays a premium for them.”
Larger producing countries will always dominate the specialty coffee market, which makes it all the more important that roasters source from a variety of different origins.
Not only does this help to meet ever-changing consumer demand, it also means roasters can better support smallholder producers in a wide range of countries.
Enjoyed this? Then read our article on what roasters learned from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Photo credits: Neumann Kaffee Gruppe, Vanessa Vick, Amelie Baumer, Ilona Murschel
Perfect Daily Grind
Please note: Neumann Kaffee Gruppe is a sponsor of Perfect Daily Grind.
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