Friday, September 26, 2008

Barista Champ Champions Coffee Farmers - Update

What a great way start a Monday. When I arrived this morning, I had a message of good news and glad tidings from Sarah Allen at Barista Magazine.

This past weekend (Sept. 12-14) Hiroshi Sawada, owner of Caffe Milk Art in Japan, competed in the Millrock Latte Art Championship and took first prize in one of the most challenging competitions to date, besting 39 of the best latte artists in the world. He has competed in numerous barista competitions traveling around the world to display his craft, but this is the first time he won. Sawada was awarded a check for $5,000 for his efforts.

Following the award ceremony Sawada tracked down Sarah Allen and said that he wanted to donate all of his prize money to Coffee Kids. All of us at Coffee Kids are humbled by Hiroshi’s generosity and grateful for his help in improving the lives of coffee-farming families.

Congratulations on your win, Hiroshi and thank you!

The competition was presented by Barista Magazine, Nuova Simonelli and Dillanos Coffee.

Add. – Hiroshi also recently appeared at Vancouver’s First Annual International Free Pour Latte Art Competition sporting a Coffee Kids t-shirt (His son appears at right with a Coffee Kids shirt. Get your own Coffee Kids t-shirt here!

Monday, September 15, 2008

Staff Makes Presentation at Intl Coffee Conference

From September 1-4, 2008, Coffee Kids’ program staff attended Ramacafé 2008 in Manauga, Nicaragua. More than 300 participants from 16 countries (mostly from Central America) attended the event.

Since 2004, Ramacafé has gathered scholars, producers, roasters, specialists, cooperatives and organizations involved in the coffee industry and coffee culture to share and discuss the future of the industry. This year, José Luis Zárate, Coffee Kids’ international program director, was invited to participate in an education panel on the first day of conference.

During the session, José Luis Zárate stressed the importance of community-based projects that respond to the needs of people in coffee-growing regions. Zárate’s presentation gave Coffee Kids’ staff the opportunity to meet various cooperatives and organizations from Central America that are interested in helping coffee-farming families.

The first day of the conference featured topics such as coffee certification, production and commercialization, as well as the health benefits of coffee, sustainability and education.

Zárate and International Program Coordinator José Carlos Leónalso visited Finca La Virgen, a coffee plantation in the state of Matagalpa, Nicaragua. During the visit, Zárate and León saw a clinic constructed by the finca that provides free medical care and medicine for the employees of La Virgen and people in the nearby communities. The finca has also constructed a school for local children and an eco-hostel to capitalize on the popularity of point-of-origin tours.

Friday, September 05, 2008

Family Gardens in Mexico

The Christian Science Monitor had an interesting article on the food crisis and how families in Mexico City are confronting rising prices with backyard gardens. “Mexico City Launches Community Gardens”, provides more interesting stats on the food crisis that is affecting the world. Mexico has already put a freeze on the prices of food staples and now they are helping establish community gardens. As I watch my own humble garden grow, I realize that the power of growing your own food isn’t so much the nutrition as it is the satisfaction found in putting a seed in the ground and watching it emerge, grow and provide sustenance.

Many of our partners are working with coffee-farming families to help them create small organic gardens that provide healthy vegetables and fruits and help build economic independence and health. Our program staff made some great pictures of one program managed by our partner FomCafé in Oaxaca, Mexico. Check it out at our Flickr page. And our partner STIAP, who has been working in biodiesel, is beginning a permaculture/gardening project this year to provide food for their community in rural Guatemala.