Transparency and "The Pledge"
As coffee makers, we communicate openly about what we do. We share knowledge in our courses and advise along the coffee chain. As a coffee roaster, we also speak about the purchase prices of our coffees and thus challenge the status quo of coffee trading.Raw coffee is too cheap. Very few small producers can make a living from it when they sell their coffee through established channels and achieve the price traded on the stock exchange. We have reported on this in several podcasts:
https://open.spotify.com/show/090WkPqHLfVjBPwZPrbrfn
As a coffee roaster, we see ourselves as responsible for paying coffee producers prices that make long-term sense for both sides. We therefore do not orient ourselves to the stock exchange price, but seek direct contact with the producers themselves to negotiate the price on equal footing. If this is (not yet) possible, we work with traders we trust. We also demand transparency from them down to as close to the producer as possible.
This is – although we live in the age of information – rarely possible in practice. For far too long, coffee trading operated as a well-guarded, intimate business where no one had to reveal their cards.
The Pledge – a commitment by coffee roasters and importers
However, these times are over – since 2018, an international group of coffee roasters (e.g. Tim Wendelboe, The Coffee Collective, Counter Culture Coffee, Quijote Kaffee, Flying Roasters, etc.) have been working on a standard for transparency in the coffee chain. The result is "The Pledge" – a commitment by roasters and importers. Those who participate in "The Pledge" commit to making detailed information about the coffees they purchase publicly available. This includes, for example:
- Who are the trading partners?
- How long have you been working with them?
- How much coffee do we buy from them?
- What is the quality?
- What prices did we pay? (e.g. FOB)
We like to quote the Flying Roasters from Berlin here, who say about the Pledge:
This way we set standards together, define what real transparency means and distinguish ourselves from pure marketing initiatives.
Transparency as an attitude
With the disclosure of our prices, we position ourselves clearly in the roasting world. We hope that many more roasteries will participate in this initiative. As Roger Wittwer from the Kafischmitte said in our Podcast about the low coffee prices in autumn 2018:
The more transparently we act, the more it will hopefully become the standard. Customers see this and may increasingly ask about the conditions under which this coffee was grown and purchased.
Roger Wittwer, Kafischmitte
Making what we do transparent is important to us. With our coffee farm in Nicaragua, the Finca Santa Rita, we are right in the middle of coffee production and see, feel and experience every day anew what it can mean to be a coffee producer.
With this background knowledge, we can and will no longer buy coffees without knowing exactly what actually comes back to the farm.
The fact that this represents additional effort for the trader is obvious. Pascal Herzog emphasizes this several times in conversation with Philipp Schallberger. This additional effort must be worthwhile for everyone – and that is why we are also willing to pay more to really get the information that satisfies us.
Transparency and open communication have always been a fundamental principle of the Kaffeemacher. In our courses, for example, we disclose our café's operating figures so that course participants can learn how to calculate material and personnel costs.
By participating in "The Pledge", we are consciously advocating for even more open communication that does not settle for certificates.
As a roaster, we commit to presenting the share of our transparently traded coffees in our overall assortment.
Our raw coffee list:
Further links on this topic:
What does FOB mean?
A text by Pascal Herzog. https://kaffeemacher.ch/preistransparenz-kaffee/
How is the coffee price collapse explained?
Podcast https://podcast.kaffeemacher.ch/2018/12/29/kaffeehandel-und-preisfall/
What does FOB, Direct Trade, Farm Gate, production costs mean?
Podcast https://podcast.kaffeemacher.ch/2019/06/19/kaffeepreis-transparenz-podcast/
Notes on Finca Santa Rita:
* Santa Rita, Nicaragua: Finca Santa Rita is a farm in joint ownership by Roberto Castellano and the Kaffeemacher (each 50% owner). Kaffeemacher GmbH purchases the coffee from Finca Santa Rita at the listed FOB price. In addition, we finance all ongoing costs on the farm.
