We thought we'd expose what we consider the 'cool' part of our business—coffee cupping. This job has potential to be considered snob'ish or conversely an excuse for an extra coffee break.
Barton Mbwaga and his wife Trezia are a part of the community of HOPE Organic farmers who grow coffee which is purchased by Level Ground Trading and sold as Café Mbeya.
Often when we asked farmers if we could see their farm they would hesitate. The reason for the hesitation was that many of them have a number of scattered, tiny plots (i.e.
Direct Fair Trade happens where the boot hits the dirt
In 2005, Level Ground Trading and Colombian agronomist Juan Velez had several objectives in mind when they began working closely with 25 small-scale coffee farming families who grow Café San