STiR coffee and tea magazine

16 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 5, 2017 (October / November) Coffee Report: Dan Shryock World Coffee Events Cancels Dubai Coffee Competition A September release announcing the locations of three upcoming coffee competitions was reversed the same day when the human rights record of one host country, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was called into question. World Coffee Events (WCE), an event management operation owned by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA), announced that Amsterdam, Belo Horizonte (Brazil), and Dubai would host world coffee championship events in 2018. The same day coffee news website Sprudge posted an article questioning the decision to include Dubai based on the country's reported use of slave labor and its laws forbidding homosexual behavior. Later in the day, SCA posted a statement indicating Dubai would not be a championship site. The statement read, in part: "We have followed the response to the announce- ment and have heard from many in our community today about this decision. The UAE's human rights issues were not taken into consideration in the selection process. This is a serious problem that shows that our selection process was not broad or inclusive enough and we at the SCA intend to correct it." "For this reason, we have decided to suspend further planning on these four events in Dubai while we consult with the boards of directors of SCA and WCE. We commit ourselves to develop- ing the appropriate policies and proce- dures that ensure we have gathered enough information to make the best possible decisions for how and where we engage in the world for all current and future activities." SCA eventally formed a panel to review the process, reconsider Dubai and make recommendations. See SCA statement here: http://bit.ly/2xXOqed AUSTRALIA Cafe Bans Disposable Cups A Sydney coffee cafe has banned the use of single-use disposable coffee cups, taking what they call a positive step toward sustainability in their community. The cafe, Tonic Lane, is the first shop in the Sidney area to make the move, according to Broadstreet Media. Estimates indicate Australians throw away about 50,000 takeaway coffee cups every 30 minutes. That adds up to 2.7 million cups a day. Tonic Lane customers can use a free mug or bring their own and receive customer loyalty points. More than 80% of its customers provide their own cups, café owners say. Since the change, the cafe says, at least 80% of its customers bring in their own cups and that it has saved 1670 single-use cups from going into landfill. "It has been cast as a bold move but cafes need to be brave and make the transition," Tonic Lane owner Lain Tapsall told Broadstreet. "We have had overwhelming community support and have customers travelling further to do their bit and get the double stamp." If customers really want a disposable cup they are provided with a biodegrad- able, single-use cup for a small fee. MEXICO Starbucks in Mexico Starbucks recently celebrated the 15th anniversary of its operations in Mexico and plans for continued expansion in the years to come. Starting with one shop in Mexico City, the specialty coffee retail giant expanded to 600 stores over 15 years' time. Interna- tional division c.e.o. Federico Tejado said the company plans to invest $44.6 million US during the next two years to add another 100-plus outlets. About 80% of that investment would be earmarked for opening new stores, 10% be set aside for remodeling existing stores, and the remainder left for what the company terms "infrastructure issues." That investment would add 1,200 positions to the current 7,000-person workforce, the company said. MYANMAR Country Gaining Market Share Myanmar is increasing its share of the international coffee market and the Mandalay Coffee Group is getting credit for much of that success, according to a recent report in the Myanmar Times. The Mandalay Coffee Group, a consortium of 50 coffee estates, have focused on increasing coffee develop- ment through international channels such the Coffee Quality Institute and Winrock International. Myanmar exported almost 550 US tons of coffee last year and about 40%, or almost 200 tons, arrived in the United States. Since the Mandalay Coffee Group formed three years ago, demand for that country's coffee has been sought after in the US where customers expect higher quality and variety, the Times reported. "Since we established the Mandalay Coffee Group, we have been able to export Myanmar coffee to the US, Japan, and Switzerland in 2015 and, last year, we added the UK, Iceland, Australia, Dubai, Hong Kong, Russia, and Netherlands to the list of interna- tional customers. This year, our export market could get bigger as we have got pretty good momentum going now," said U Sai Wan of Green Land, a coffee plantation in Pyin Oo Lwin, Mandalay. PAPUA NEW GUINEA Beetle Causes Destruction The coffee berry borer is threatening production on Papua New Guinea. The government-run Coffee Industry Corporation reported in June that tons of cherry coffee from the Dei District of the Western Highlands Province were being rejected each day because of the beetle infestation. Harvests have been confiscated and destroyed. The cherry coffee borer first appeared here in 2009 and the current outbreak was discovered in February. Coffee borer beetle

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