STiR coffee and tea magazine

24 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 2, 2020 (April / May) Bambi sold majority control of La Marzocco in 1994 but remained part of the organization as honorary president and continued to work every day, the company said. Memorial service plans will be announced at a later date. JAMAICA Stopping Counterfeit Coffee The sale of counterfeit coffee is a growing problem in Jamaica and now officials are making a move to stop it. The Jamaica Agricultural Commodi- ties Regulatory Authority (JACRA) is initiating a major enforcement effort to stop the pervasive sale and distribution of coffee claiming to be Jamaican premium brands, the Jamaica Observer reports. JACRA will be supported by the National Compliance and Regulatory Authority and the Major Organized Crime Authority. The regulatory authority estimates millions of dollars are lost primarily to the misrepresentation of counterfeit coffee products that are of substandard quality. The fake coffee threatens the "integrity and reputation of genuine Jamaican specialty products – Jamaica Blue Mountain and Jamaica High Mountain coffee," the Jamaica Observer report said. "We will apply the full letter of the law, including the seizure of the contraband and the application of other enforcement measures," a release from the Authority said. "Over the years, JACRA has tried to use moral [persua- sion] and strident appeals to offending parties to adhere to good corporate governance and to cease and desist from this injurious practice, but to no avail. These enterprises know themselves and are familiar with the methods, including trademarks and labeling standards that can be used to assure the authenticity of the products and help to determine that only genuine products are marketed," the release said. "Given the real and potential damage to the regulated agricultural commodities sector, the anti-competitive effect of the illicit trade and its negative impact on the welfare of farmers and investors, JACRA must act and we will apply the full letter of the law, including the seizure of the contraband and the application of other enforcement measures," it added. SOUTH KOREA Coffee Drink Sales Up Coffee drink sales grew more than 2% in value in South Korea during 2019, based in large part on the popularity of bottled products, new research indicates. Analysts expect the trend to continue with the growing popularity of bottled products, according to Comunicaffe International. Nielsen Korea reports cof- fee drink sales totaled $1.1 billion last year, a 2.2% increase over 2018. Shipments of bottled drinks were up 60.1% while canned products dropped 6.1% and single cups of instant coffee ticked up 1.9%. UNITED STATES Wann Takes Helm at Royal Cup Coffee Chip Wann is the new president and c.e.o. of Royal Cup Coffee, the Ala- bama-based coffee importer and roaster. He immediately assumed his new duties. Wann joined Royal Cup in 2017 as c.f.o. and became the company's first-ever c.o.o. in April 2019. "Chip has successfully led our company on a path of modernization while maximizing efficiencies across the board," said Bill Smith Jr., chairman of Royal Cup's board of directors. "His commitment to our customers, team, and product lines solidified our confi- dence in his ability to lead our team for the long term." "Royal Cup is positioned well for growth in our highly competi- tive marketplace," Wann said. "With the investments made by our team in our people, processes, and systems, I am confident in our ability to continue offering our customers the experience they have come to expect from us while driving profitable growth for the company." Former president and c.e.o. Bill Smith III, will move into a position within the company, serving as a strategic advisor. Smith will focus on new and unique opportunities for the Royal Cup brand, as well as remain an active member of the board of directors. CLR Roasters Gets Financing for Big Bean Deal CLR Roasters has secured financing to buy as much as 49 million pounds of green coffee from Nicaragua for the 2020 growing season. Youngevity International, Inc., Parent company said in a statement that CLR Roasters "has entered into a finance and supply agreement for the 2020 growing season with H&H Export y Cia, Ltda, funded by H&H Export's $46,500,000 credit facility established with a Nicaraguan special purpose agency." CLR Roasters provided $11.1 million in additional collateral to secure the deal, the statement said. The company intends to process green beans at the new state-of-the-art production facility it built in partnership with the Siles Family Plantation Group in Matagalpa, Nicara- gua, and expects to have the processing plant operational by July. Unprocessed green coffee beans are already being dried and stored at there. CLR's other company-owned production facility, La Pita, located in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, already is processing the 2020 green coffee crop. "This is a very impressive partner- ship and this finance and supply agreement has fortified our position as one of the lead processors and exporters coming out of Nicaragua," said Dave Briskie, Youngevity's president and c.f.o. "We expect our balance sheet will be strengthened because of this partnership and we plan on leveraging this relation- ship to further grow our top line revenue and operating profits." The late Piero Bambi of La Marzocco

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