Late last year, I worked with Phyllis Johnson, President of BD Imports in Rockford, Illinois, to capture some of her impressions of a recent whirlwind tour through Eastern Africa. The trip was a group effort and part of her work as a Board member of the International Women's Coffee Alliance (IWCA, womenincoffee.org). In its December issue, Tea & Coffee Trade Journal featured the article on the cover and also included several of Phyllis' fabulous photos. BD Imports develops a roasted brand of specialty grade coffees sourced from the best coffee-producing regions in Africa.
This post is a reprint of the article, with permission from Tea & Coffee Trade Journal.
You can also view the article in their digital edition where you can see the original layout and all of the photos.
Founded in 2003, the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA) was created with a mission to “empower women in the international coffee community to achieve meaningful and sustainable lives; and to encourage and recognize the participation of women in all aspects of the coffee industry.”
According to its website at http://www.womenincoffee.org/, it is a global network of women in coffee that advocates for the reduction of barriers for all women in the coffee value chain, by providing access to resources while creating a forum in which to connect.
The group is achieving progressive results through their strategy of “Success through Localization” with international chapter development and funding. Recently, this work took IWCA representatives on a whirlwind 10-day mission that witnessed stops in five East African countries and was supported by the UN affiliate International Trade Center (ITC). These countries—Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania—have active organizing committees that are pursuing IWCA chapter formation.
IWCA Vice President Grace Mena, President of Deli-Café, S.A., a coffee exporting company in Costa Rica, and board member Phyllis Johnson, President of BD Imports in Rockford, Illinois, spent time meeting with all of the organizing committees. Mena and Johnson were accompanied by Emma Joynson-Hicks from Café Africa, a not-for-profit organization based in Uganda, who has played a significant role in guiding the formation of the individual organizing committees.
The team of representatives also met with political and industry leaders, informing them of the mission of IWCA and the work done in Central and South America. To their delight, African leaders were in great support of the organizing chapters. The African women are excited about establishing pathways to be a part of a global network of women in coffee.
In addition to these countless meetings in the cities and in the coffee fields, the team took a moment for an unforgettable cupping workshop with the Rwandan IWCA forming chapter. Attendees had the opportunity to discuss the differences in regions and altitudes between their coffees and those of Costa Rica.
Paul Stewart, Director of Technoserve Rwanda, gracefully organized the session so that the women could have a chance to compare their beautiful coffees with another origin famous for its quality. In this effort, another IWCA objective was addressed: helping the women producers understand measures of quality and how the evaluative process of cupping can be a critical aid in eventually bringing their coffees to market.
“This event was a satisfying completion of the conversation I had on travels with Immy Kamarade, the chairperson of the Rwanda organizing committee,” explained Mena. “I encouraged them to think of the fine Costa Rican flavors as their yardstick to help develop an appreciation for their own flavors.”
Kamarade is Managing Director of Dallas Investments that markets Karisimbi specialty Arabica coffee. She added, “We talked about different types of honey and natural coffee prepared from Costa Rica. Personally, I loved the way [they] cupped the coffee and how appreciation is seen on their faces for the aroma, full body, and the chocolate taste. I think it is very crucial for every buyer/ seller to be able to cup her or his coffee so that you know what you are really selling. It was a great experience that has helped in future planning for my coffee.”
Marie- Josée Kankera, Managing Director of Busozo Hills Coffee Limited in Kigali-Rwanda, also participated. “The impression was that Rwandan coffee is very good and as competitive as the Costa Rican coffee,” she explained. “This exercise was a very good experience for sellers to be aware of the beauty of the product they are selling.”
Kankera is also excited about the future of an IWCA chapter in Rwanda. “Being connected with women in coffee all over the world will help us to grow our coffee business, increase our coffee quality and quantity, share experience and access the coffee market with a real ‘specialty coffee.’
“The long term benefits will be increased coffee production in quantity and quality due to experience sharing, financial support, and partnership with various interveners in investment promotion and capacity building. The visitors from IWCA were very experienced in cupping and we look forward to learning more from them!”
One of the IWCA’s six core values is Collaboration with the supporting explanation, “because communities hold the solutions to their own problems, we believe the best way to impact the communities we serve is through collaboration and partnership.” Clearly, their work has the potential to make a lasting, positive impact on the future of global coffee production.
This post is a reprint of the article, with permission from Tea & Coffee Trade Journal.
You can also view the article in their digital edition where you can see the original layout and all of the photos.
Founded in 2003, the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA) was created with a mission to “empower women in the international coffee community to achieve meaningful and sustainable lives; and to encourage and recognize the participation of women in all aspects of the coffee industry.”
According to its website at http://www.womenincoffee.org/, it is a global network of women in coffee that advocates for the reduction of barriers for all women in the coffee value chain, by providing access to resources while creating a forum in which to connect.
The group is achieving progressive results through their strategy of “Success through Localization” with international chapter development and funding. Recently, this work took IWCA representatives on a whirlwind 10-day mission that witnessed stops in five East African countries and was supported by the UN affiliate International Trade Center (ITC). These countries—Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania—have active organizing committees that are pursuing IWCA chapter formation.
IWCA Vice President Grace Mena, President of Deli-Café, S.A., a coffee exporting company in Costa Rica, and board member Phyllis Johnson, President of BD Imports in Rockford, Illinois, spent time meeting with all of the organizing committees. Mena and Johnson were accompanied by Emma Joynson-Hicks from Café Africa, a not-for-profit organization based in Uganda, who has played a significant role in guiding the formation of the individual organizing committees.
The team of representatives also met with political and industry leaders, informing them of the mission of IWCA and the work done in Central and South America. To their delight, African leaders were in great support of the organizing chapters. The African women are excited about establishing pathways to be a part of a global network of women in coffee.
In addition to these countless meetings in the cities and in the coffee fields, the team took a moment for an unforgettable cupping workshop with the Rwandan IWCA forming chapter. Attendees had the opportunity to discuss the differences in regions and altitudes between their coffees and those of Costa Rica.
Paul Stewart, Director of Technoserve Rwanda, gracefully organized the session so that the women could have a chance to compare their beautiful coffees with another origin famous for its quality. In this effort, another IWCA objective was addressed: helping the women producers understand measures of quality and how the evaluative process of cupping can be a critical aid in eventually bringing their coffees to market.
“This event was a satisfying completion of the conversation I had on travels with Immy Kamarade, the chairperson of the Rwanda organizing committee,” explained Mena. “I encouraged them to think of the fine Costa Rican flavors as their yardstick to help develop an appreciation for their own flavors.”
Kamarade is Managing Director of Dallas Investments that markets Karisimbi specialty Arabica coffee. She added, “We talked about different types of honey and natural coffee prepared from Costa Rica. Personally, I loved the way [they] cupped the coffee and how appreciation is seen on their faces for the aroma, full body, and the chocolate taste. I think it is very crucial for every buyer/ seller to be able to cup her or his coffee so that you know what you are really selling. It was a great experience that has helped in future planning for my coffee.”
Marie- Josée Kankera, Managing Director of Busozo Hills Coffee Limited in Kigali-Rwanda, also participated. “The impression was that Rwandan coffee is very good and as competitive as the Costa Rican coffee,” she explained. “This exercise was a very good experience for sellers to be aware of the beauty of the product they are selling.”
Kankera is also excited about the future of an IWCA chapter in Rwanda. “Being connected with women in coffee all over the world will help us to grow our coffee business, increase our coffee quality and quantity, share experience and access the coffee market with a real ‘specialty coffee.’
“The long term benefits will be increased coffee production in quantity and quality due to experience sharing, financial support, and partnership with various interveners in investment promotion and capacity building. The visitors from IWCA were very experienced in cupping and we look forward to learning more from them!”
One of the IWCA’s six core values is Collaboration with the supporting explanation, “because communities hold the solutions to their own problems, we believe the best way to impact the communities we serve is through collaboration and partnership.” Clearly, their work has the potential to make a lasting, positive impact on the future of global coffee production.
What an inspiring article. Thank you. I learned so much.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. I'm glad you enjoyed reading it.
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