Coffee News Recap, 24 Nov: Last chance for speaker applications for PRF Guatemala, Luckin overtakes Starbucks as biggest Chinese chain & other stories

Every Friday, Perfect Daily Grind rounds up the top coffee industry news from the previous week.

Here are this week’s coffee news stories.

Mon, 20 Nov

Volunteer & scholarship applications open for PRF Guatemala. PRF Diamond Sponsor Mayorga Coffee will once again offer 500 local coffee producers the chance to attend the two-day forum in Guatemala City. Meanwhile, prospective volunteers are encouraged to apply to help host the event on 7 & 8 March 2024.

Three 2023 World Coffee Champions crowned in Taiwan. China’s LiangFan won the 2023 World Latte Art Championship, the UK’s Rastislav Kasar won the 2023 World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, and Indonesia’s Taufan Mokoginta won the 2023 World Coffee Roasting Championship.

Starbucks says it plans to establish an Environmental, Partner, and Community Impact Board Committee. The company says the new committee will assist the Board of Directors in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities as it responds to shifting regulations and standards, as well as drive accountability across Starbucks promises on environment, partners, and community impact.

COFE announces partnership with De’Longhi and Jazean. The online coffee marketplace says the partnership will “integrate the brilliance of premium Italian coffee machines with the richness of top-tier Saudi coffee beans”. It will involve in-app brand integration and distribution strategies.

Study suggests coffee could help prevent Covid-19 infection. A study published in Cell & Bioscience found that drinking one to two cups of coffee per day could curb Covid-19 infection, citing compounds like chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, cafestol, melanoidins, and trigonelline as potential aids.

Kyle Engelman replaces Ellen Starr as Executive Director of Grounds for Health. Starr is retiring after 13 years with the nonprofit organisation, which carries out cervical cancer prevention programmes in coffee-producing communities.

Tue, 21 Nov

PRF launches PRF Seed entrepreneurship competition. The competition aims to award volunteer and scholar leaders who are committed to generating impactful ideas in coffee. The US $10,000 prize pool will be distributed among a maximum of four winners. Finalists will be selected through public voting and the winners will be announced at PRF Guatemala on 7 & 8 March 2024.

Lao Specialty Coffee hosts “meet the producers” and tasting event in London, England. The event took place at Colonna and Small’s in Leather Lane. Attendees interacted with several of Lao’s producers and had the chance to sample various coffees.

Early bird tickets for MICE2024 now available. Attendees can secure discounted early bird tickets until 31 January 2024. Next year’s MICE will take place at the Melbourne International Convention and Exhibition Centre from 12 to 14 May 2024.

Camber Coffee launches new collaboration with Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service. The coffee collaborations celebrate 20th anniversary milestones for both bands, featuring coffees “personally tasted and approved” by the artists. The coffees are exclusively available through the respective band websites.

Intelligentsia launches RTD canned cold coffee. The coffee features the brand’s Black Cat Espresso, sourced through direct trade. It’s available in four or 24-can packs.

Rancilio unveils Grindtec Kryo Elite coffee grinder. The Kryo Elite 65 OD features 64mm flat steel burrs and a digital display. Rancilio says it can grind 4.5g per second for espresso, while users can programme three different dose settings.

Oatly launches Hey, Barista coffee magazine app. The Oatly-funded app features café listings and insights from coffee creatives and other coffee professionals. It’s available on both iOS and Android.

Luckin Coffee overtakes Starbucks as leading coffee chain in China. The Chinese coffee chain has leveraged technology like mobile ordering to increase its reach, alongside aggressive store expansion. It now operates around 11,000 stores in the country.

Lavazza unveils new flagship store in London, England. The Great Marlborough Street store features a design inspired by the Italian company’s headquarters in Milan. It includes three distinct areas: the Caffetteria, the Pasticceria, and the Gastronomia.

Wed, 22 Nov

Last chance to apply to be a speaker at PRF Guatemala 2024. Coffee industry professionals have until 1 December 2023 to apply to speak at the two-day forum. It’s set to take place on 7 & 8 March 2024 and Guatemalan coffee professionals are especially encouraged to participate.

Labour coalition nominates three candidates to Starbucks board of directors. The Strategic Organizing Center has nominated former senior White House official Maria Echaveste, experienced executive Joshua Gotbaum, and labour law expert Wilma Liebman to the board, aiming to “help the company address its significant human capital issues and chart a sustainable path forward”.

Sucafina continues to expand IMPACT responsible coffee sourcing programme. The green coffee trader says it’s in the process of expanding the programme into China, Vietnam, Uganda, Colombia, and Honduras. The programme provides assurance that the practices along Sucafina’s supply chain are compliant with a range of standards and focuses on five measurable goals.

Bakers + Baristas secures new loan to help accelerate expansion in the UK and Ireland. The Causeway Capital subsidiary currently operates more than 60 outlets across the UK and Ireland and anticipates a total of US $24 million in sales in 2024.

Study finds spent coffee grounds may be useful in preventing neurodegenerative disease. Researchers at the University of Texas say Carbon Quantum Dots (CACQDs) produced by caffeic acid in used coffee grounds can protect brain cells against the damage caused by diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

Saudi Coffee Company partners with Beans United to promote local green coffee. Beans United will offer Saudi green coffee to its Piccolo Specialty Coffee Roasters clients across the country. The Saudi Coffee Company says the deal will help support local farmers and “advance the technical knowledge of agriculture in the coffee sector”.

The London Coffee Festival set to return from 11 to 14 April 2024. The annual coffee festival will once again take place at the Truman Brewery in Spitalfields, London. Organisers promise the biggest event yet, featuring industry talks, Latte Art Live, and Coffee Masters London 2024.

Danish company develops DesignerWater for coffee brewing. The water, developed in cooperation with the University of Copenhagen, minimises lime scale buildup and corrosion in brewing equipment. The company says it’s been “scientifically proven and tested by a trained sensory panel”.

Thu, 23 Nov

SCA hosts Coffee Value Assessment Course for Cuppers in Bandung, Indonesia. The event took place at 5758 Coffee Lab on 23 & 24 November, introducing experienced cuppers to the new cupping protocol and value assessment system.

Cxffeeblack continues to raise funds for the next Black Barista Exchange programme. The programme will give young African coffee professionals the opportunity to train in the US before taking a number of African American baristas on an origin trip in Africa. The project will wrap up with a visit to the Color of Coffee Symposium in Houston, Texas in March 2024.

Coffee charity organisations encouraged to apply for 2024 NCA Charity Showcase and Charity of the Year Award. The application process is now fully online, with the deadline for applicants set for 8 December 2023. The events aim to highlight charities dedicated to supporting coffee communities.

Coffee Planet receives four awards in the Middle East. The UAE coffee company received four awards in recent weeks: Team of the Year – Food & Beverage and National Business Award for Food and Beverage (Middle East Management Excellence Awards), Food Service Icon (Retail Middle East Magazine Food Service Icons Awards), and UAE Superbrand (19th Annual Superbrands Tribute).

ACE Los Rodriguez Collection Nº2 private collection auction scheduled for 30 January 2024. Available lots include a natural SL-28 that received 91.70 points, a washed Geisha that received 91.20 points, and a natural Geisha that received 91.50 points. The auction will include a total of 30 lots.

Turn Capital acquires Flash Coffee’s Thai business. The company says it plans to open 100 new stores over the next two years, effectively doubling Flash Coffee’s presence in Thailand.

Nespresso launches take-away concept store in Madrid, Spain. The “Nespresso-to-go” concept store is located at the company’s Gran Vía boutique, offering customers take-away Nespresso coffee. The company says the pilot project represents a “strategic step” in its brand evolution.

Ole & Steen apoints Joachim Knudsen as new Group CEO. The former McDonald’s executive has 35 years of industry experience and will help to optimise the business, aiming to deliver stronger organic growth and profitability.

Fri, 24 Nov

North American Agroforestry Conference to take place in Costa Rica in 2024. The biennial event aims to enrich understanding of research and development outcomes within temperate agroforestry production systems. It will take place at CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) in Turrialba, Costa Rica from 20 to 22 February 2024.

Trieste Coffee Experts 2023 takes place on 25 & 26 November in Trieste, Italy. The sixth edition of the invite-only event aims to inspire the creation of new tools and strategies to disseminate coffee culture in the Italian market and beyond.

European Coffee Symposium 2023 scheduled for 27 to 29 November in Barcelona, Spain. The annual event is split into two distinct categories – with the Supply & Innovation Sessions held on the first two days, and the Symposium Conference taking place on the last day. It will be hosted at the W Barcelona Hotel.

The Barista League heads to Atlanta, USA on 1 December. The multi-disciplinary barista competition will be accompanied by plenty of drinks, a live DJ, and several spectator challenges. Guest judges include Anthony Ragler and Kat Melheim of Black & White Coffee and Divya Raghavan of CoffeeKiRani.

Triestespresso Expo to return for 11th edition from 24 to 26 October 2024. Organisers have announced the dates for next year’s event, promising three days of full immersion in the world of coffee at the Trieste Convention Centre in Italy.

Café World Summit 2024 scheduled for 20 to 23 March in Costa Rica. Organisers say they expect more than 3,000 coffee professionals to attend the event, which will feature four separate forums, more than 40 exhibits, and a Brewers Cup competition.

First-ever CoHo Expo set to run alongside European Coffee Symposium in Berlin, Germany next year. The combined ECS + Coho Expo is touted as Europe’s flagship coffee and hospitality event and will feature exhibitions from various hospitality businesses, one-on-one networking meetings, a seminar programme, and the annual European Coffee Awards.

SCA Green Coffee Summit full schedule now available. The online summit is scheduled to take place on 5 & 6 December, focusing on “Green Coffee & Extrinsic Attributes” on day one and “Green Coffee & Value Design” on day two.

International Coffee and Chocolate Exhibition 2024 set to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 5 to 9 December. The industry event will feature an extensive trade show, over 100 activities, a dedicated awards ceremony, and the Saudi Arabian Brewers Cup competition. It will be held at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center.

SIGEP 2024 to feature more than 1,200 brands from 20 to 24 January 2024. The 45th edition of the World Dolce Expo will be held at the Rimini Expo Centre in Italy, featuring a complete overview of the latest foodservice and coffee industry developments. Tickets are available now.

Here are a few coffee news stories from previous weeks that you might find interesting. Take a look.

Thu, 8 Nov – Oatly discontinues construction of new production facilities in North America and Europe. As part of its “asset-light production strategy”, the company will instead focus on expanding capacity at existing facilities, citing high capital expenditure requirements.

Thu, 16 Nov – Yemen announces 17 qualifying samples for second National Coffee Auction. The Supreme Committee for the National Coffee Auction of Yemen says the samples represent the best and finest types of coffee produced in Yemen. The auction will take place online on 11 January 2024.

Thu, 16 Nov – Arvid Nordquist launches Nordic Light light roasted coffee blend. The Swedish roaster says its first light roast features hints of orange and caramel aromas, with well-balanced acidity and a fruity sweetness.

Thu, 16 Nov – Three winners announced at 2023 Champions of Brazilian Origins Contest. The winners were announced during Brazil International Coffee Week in Belo Horizonte and are as follows: Pieter Johannes (Alta Mogiana), José Ricardo Carvalho (Cerrado Mineiro), Marcos Hartmann (Chapada de Minas), Elias Krohling (Espírito Santo), Fabiano Diniz (Matas de Minas), and Eduardo Silva (Sul de Minas).

Coffee news photo credits: Producer & Roaster Forum, World Coffee Championships