STiR coffee and tea magazine

6 STiR coffee and tea | 2024 Issue 3 (June / July) Executive Editor Emily Mclntyre emily@coffeetea.media Contributing Writers Eugene Gerden (Georgia) Diane Faulkner (USA) Fionn Pooler (Scotland) Diana Jendoubi (Thailand) Tea Correspondent Dan Bolton tea@coffeetea.media Art Director Somjet Thitasomboon snt@octobermultimedia.com Administrative Assistant Sommai Jekaram asj@octobermultimedia.com Subscriptions Malisa Kongkatitum malisa@stir-tea-coffee.com Sales Director Emerson Leonard edl@octobermultimedia.com Director, October Inter Co., Ltd. Boonthin Tubsongkroh brt@octobermultimedia.com Founding Editor & Publisher Glenn Anthony John glenn@coffeetea.media c/o October Inter Co. Ltd. 159/19 Soi Ramkhamhaeng 110, Saphan Sung, Bangkok 10240 THAILAND. Tel: +66818299409. www.coffeetea.media Published by A Member of In This Issue P Subscribe to STiR Coffee and Tea Magazine 1 Year – US$75.00 2 Years – US$145.00 3 Years – US$210.00 For inquiries, contact: malisa@stir-tea-coffee.com Secure online payment: https://www.stir-tea-coffee.com/subscribe icture a butterfly in its chrysalis, metamorphosing. It struggles out and its wings stiffen, its body unfurls, and it takes on its final shape. This is a great metaphor for how a magazine issue unfolds. In this, my first issue as STiR's Executive Editor, I've appreci- ated the process and am proud of the results. There's a throughline for the issue: close observation of the historical trends and challenges to coffee and tea, in particular widespread human rights issues and fluctuations of supply and demand, covered by Diane Faulkner in her article surrounding the Lipton Infusions sale to Browns Investments, The Future of Tea Isn't What You Think (page 26)—check out the sidebar titled Divesting Tea Gardens Signals Change in Strategy for Liptons—and by Dan Bolton in his encyclopedic cover story, Too Much Tea (page 40), which analyzes the problem of oversupply at the export level of black coffee globally. A new column I'm introducing and writing this issue asks the logical questions proceeding from these issues: "Is "Good Growth" possible in coffee and tea?" Good Growth (page 20) outlines some of the challenges in measuring the ROI of social impact work, how marketing can mislead, and how time frames are critical to the conversation. In an important obser- vation of how volume can impact producer relations, Diana Jendoubi interviews Kenneth Rimdahl in our Q&A with particular focus on using AI technology to map biodiversity (page 7). Furthering the comparison of big vs. little and sustainability messaging vs. action, we have an opinion piece by Fionn Pooler, The Big Business Reality of Specialty Coffee (page 38), which examines how VC funding has impacted specialty coffee over the past few years. Pre- mium coffee has penetrated the global markets, and continuing our coverage of European coffee (and just in time for World of Coffee Copenhagen), we have an interesting report on the Hungarian specialty coffee market by Eugene Gerden, Premium Coffee Stimulates the Hungarian Market (page 46). Supply and demand are essential to the movement of coffee and tea around the world—and price is both a predictor and a function of value. Auction-Informed Green Coffee Price Dis- covery (page 32) uses data from the specialty coffee auction platform M-Cultivo to share insights into what buyers desire and how it influences price. Deepening coverage of how coffee is valued, we explore the green coffee matchmaking event hosted at the SCA Expo in Chicago in April 2024, with particular attention to how the story of coffee can influence its perceived merit and result in higher prices. That's Green Coffee Connect (page 24). International trade is dependent upon timely and workable treaties, which makes our cover- age of the Mercosur Free-Trade Treaty essential reading for anyone buying or selling out of South America. Hint: it's still stalled. (Page 34). And although I recommend reading our entire Coffee Report (page 10) and Tea Report (page 14), pay attention to the brief on Ethiopia's raw coffee sector being opened to FDI (Foreign Direct Investment), as we intend to offer more analysis on this important development in the next issue. I hope that this newsprint butterfly gives you some important thoughts to think on and wel- come your input! — Emily McIntyre, Executive Editor

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