THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COFFEE SECTOR

Farmers – the beginning of the process of creating a cup of coffee in the overall industry system have had positive changes to better understand the value of the product and give good result over a long period of time. Many people think that it is difficult for farmers to change, but looking at the overall industry today, you will be surprised when these people have had a significant impact on the development of the industry.

Farmers all over the world are constantly raising their awareness about plant varieties, the industry, and about “sustainable development” to take actions beyond the expectations. Advanced/modern science and technology are constantly applied to improve the process of nursery and production. They collaborate with scientists in researching new plant varieties and do not hesitate to test on farms and individual households in search of varieties suitable to the soil, natural conditions, and friendly to the travel. These actions contribute to the development of their homeland. Farmers are also more open to sharing experiences, exchanging plant varieties between regions, localities, and even countries to expand relations and understanding.

With regard to preliminary processing, the understanding of plant varieties helps farmers to select and develop new preliminary methods suitable for their needs and purposes. The traditional processing methods have been improved, new processing methods have been studied and applied.

With more than 2.25 billion cups of coffee consumed each day, coffee is one of the most important items in the world. Today, coffee is worth more than the US $ 100 billion a year. International trade expanded after the 1990s and was driven by the rise of global value chains (Global Value Chains). The rise of trade and GVC has fueled economic growth and reduced poverty. It creates unexpected changes: poor countries grow rapidly, which speeds up the process to catch up with developing and developed countries soon.

The team of traders and suppliers worldwide actively seeking good sources of raw materials, exploring and developing working channels with relentless efforts, which has had a significant impact on the process of operating and diversifying products in the coffee market. At the same time, traders and suppliers also balance and stabilize the price of coffee, which ensures fairness in the system and brings the value return to farmers in an appropriate and effective manner. In addition to understanding the potential of coffee varieties, farming conditions… traders, suppliers, must also understand the local culture, economy, and politics of the coffee supply, understand the law, choose the plan import and export suitable for the whole operation process to be fast and efficient.

Roasting is an art, and roasting will be the main performer. I used to think that the oven takes care of all the work related to coffee beans until I saw how roasters at the 43 Coffee Factory actually roasted. Roasting is not simply a process of material transformation, to make green coffee beans brown. This is a process that requires more than gray matter, meticulousness, and patience.

When working, a roaster needs to understand all the steps in the roasting process first. At the same time, he must understand the nature of the bean. The way of conversion is also an indispensable stage to start this scientific process.

In today’s new era, roasters have many sources of information to help streamline the operation and performance of roasting and processing machines. They take the initiative, find new ways, and proceed. Based on the experience and knowledge, roasters develop their own roasting charts for each coffee varieties, select the appropriate roasting method. They change and adapt to new materials, receive science and technology, use appropriate and selective support tools.

In addition, within the market today, more and more companies provide cutting-edge roaster systems, improve roasting quality, and support roaster actively in the process of performing their jobs. For international markets, brands of roasters like Probat and Geisen are no stranger to coffee lovers; for Vietnam, Opp Roaster is a representative who cannot be ignored. Many smart roasting profile management systems are also a powerful hand for roasters. We are not familiar with the software, applications such as Cropter or Artisan software. Therefore, the roaster must always be ready and innovative to update and use technology to create great products.

Barista – the end of the Farm to cup process, is responsible for conveying the entire value and product message to customers, helping consumers better understand the coffee industry.

In the relentless movement of the value system, along with the continuous development of the economy and culture, the barista must always update the knowledge of the entire process to create a delicious cup of coffee. They understand all the values and send valuable notes of flavor to the endpoint – the consumer. Baristas will bring stories about the type of land coffee, explain how to harvest, pre-process, introduce the process of transportation, storage and roasting; sometimes, he also whispers small thoughts about the farmer’s stories or discusses the industry’s sustainable development process. The baristas do not only create a simple coffee but also conveys the value of a system that is actively working for the development of society. Therefore, knowledge about industry, culture, society, economy, and politics is the fulcrum that barista needs to acquire.

Besides the basic knowledge that barista needs, the skills are now on a new level. Making coffee is not simple like putting coffee into the machine, extracting a comparative brown liquid, or casually pouring the coffee powder into a layer of uncoated filter paper and pouring water into the brownish water. Making coffee requires more than that. The barista must know the proper brewing method for the coffee he is using, the appropriate grind size, the required temperature, and the extraction time. They understand and control each stage, consider and evaluate continuously the process of creating products. They need more knowledge and skills than what people can see, and put their minds & attention on each cup of coffee. Barista will listen directly, approach, and choose products to meet the need of customers; Therefore, the requirements of communication skills are gradually increased at the same time with brewing skills.

Today, there are many competitions to demonstrate coffee skills. World Coffee Event is the most popular one. In addition to finding talented bartenders, competitions help form and broaden new values. From these events, baristas give an overview to people, conveys the message of sustainable development, “enlighten the industry, not assert themselves”. They live for the community and willing to devote to society. Their skills have been honed, their services have improved, and their vision can shape the future of the coffee industry.

The coffee maker with meticulous and small work can operate a whole world of economic value. But deep inside, coffee beans are the seeds of the universe, and coffee makers are hard workers who create the world of flavors with God.

The article is of a personal opinion – if there are new information or suggestions, please comment via mail: services@43factory.coffee