Latest publications
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4-5 min readYemen’s coffee story in the middle of a humanit...
Yemen’s crisis in context Yemen’s war began as a domestic political struggle, but it quickly grew into a regional proxy conflict shaped by shifting alliances and competing interests. When the Houthis took...
Yemen’s coffee story in the middle of a humanit...
Yemen’s crisis in context Yemen’s war began as a domestic political struggle, but it quickly grew into a regional proxy conflict shaped by shifting alliances and competing interests. When the Houthis took...
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4-5 min readCoffee and the development trap: why the system...
What is dependency theory? Dependency theory emerged in the 1960s and 1970s as a response to the idea that “development” simply meant following the economic path of wealthier nations. Thinkers such...
Coffee and the development trap: why the system...
What is dependency theory? Dependency theory emerged in the 1960s and 1970s as a response to the idea that “development” simply meant following the economic path of wealthier nations. Thinkers such...
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6 min readClimate migration and the future of coffee: how...
Climate change is no longer a distant threat for coffee producers. Across Central America, rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, and new waves of pests are dismantling the foundations of one of...
Climate migration and the future of coffee: how...
Climate change is no longer a distant threat for coffee producers. Across Central America, rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, and new waves of pests are dismantling the foundations of one of...
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7 min readWhy F1 hybrids might define the future of coffee
Why coffee needs new genetics Coffee’s gene pool is worryingly narrow. Studies suggest that almost all Coffea arabica plants today trace back to a single ancestor that evolved around 10–20,000...
Why F1 hybrids might define the future of coffee
Why coffee needs new genetics Coffee’s gene pool is worryingly narrow. Studies suggest that almost all Coffea arabica plants today trace back to a single ancestor that evolved around 10–20,000...
All Articles
6-7 min read
September Unfiltered - A few pricing tweaks, a...
Welcome to this month’s Unfiltered. The biggest focus this month has been pricing. Not the most exciting topic, I know - but a really important one. At the heart of it...
September Unfiltered - A few pricing tweaks, a...
Welcome to this month’s Unfiltered. The biggest focus this month has been pricing. Not the most exciting topic, I know - but a really important one. At the heart of it...
4 min read
Congo’s conflict and coffee: a fragile future
The Democratic Republic of Congo is more often associated with conflict than coffee. Yet the country’s conditions for Arabica and Robusta are remarkable. In the 1980s, coffee was second only to copper as the...
Congo’s conflict and coffee: a fragile future
The Democratic Republic of Congo is more often associated with conflict than coffee. Yet the country’s conditions for Arabica and Robusta are remarkable. In the 1980s, coffee was second only to copper as the...
3 min read
Excelsa: coffee’s overlooked alternative
A changing landscape Speciality coffee has been built around Arabica, but the cracks are showing. Climate change is pushing temperatures higher, rainfall is less predictable, and pests and diseases are...
Excelsa: coffee’s overlooked alternative
A changing landscape Speciality coffee has been built around Arabica, but the cracks are showing. Climate change is pushing temperatures higher, rainfall is less predictable, and pests and diseases are...
4 min read
Financing coffee’s future: why access to credit...
Innovation in coffee is often talked about in terms of processing or varietals, but behind every experiment lies a more fundamental question: can producers afford to take the risk? For...
Financing coffee’s future: why access to credit...
Innovation in coffee is often talked about in terms of processing or varietals, but behind every experiment lies a more fundamental question: can producers afford to take the risk? For...
4 min read
Myanmar’s fragile journey from opium to coffee
Myanmar is beginning to make its mark in the specialty coffee world. Coffees from Shan State have reached international buyers, showing both quality and potential. But this story is fragile....
Myanmar’s fragile journey from opium to coffee
Myanmar is beginning to make its mark in the specialty coffee world. Coffees from Shan State have reached international buyers, showing both quality and potential. But this story is fragile....
4-5 min read
Monoculture vs intercropping – what’s in it for...
The way coffee is grown has a direct impact on the quality in the cup, the livelihoods of farmers, and the long-term health of the land. For decades, large-scale monoculture...
Monoculture vs intercropping – what’s in it for...
The way coffee is grown has a direct impact on the quality in the cup, the livelihoods of farmers, and the long-term health of the land. For decades, large-scale monoculture...
