SCAA 2003 Highlights

It was a banner year for Fair Trade at the Specialty Coffee Association of America's Annual Conference and Expo, held in Boston from April 23-27th. Thanks to the support of the DOEN Foundation and the Green Development Foundation, 96 coffee producers from 13 countries and 35 cooperatives were able to attend the event: a key educational and sales opportunity for the specialty coffee industry. In addition, we'd like to extend a special thanks to Royal Coffee NY Inc. for organizing the first ever Fair Trade Coffee Cupping event. Read on for a summary of show highlights…

TransFair kicked off this year's SCAA events with a two-day educational forum for producers and industry. Here, specialty coffee market leaders and producers shared their expertise and Fair Trade successes. TransFair's President and CEO Paul Rice also spoke on the growth of Fair Trade coffee sales in the US market. The Forum was followed by a Fair Trade Cupping event and the four-day SCAA expo and program. Each day, coffees from selected origins were judged in the SCAA Cupping Pavilion. We're thrilled to report that Fair Trade coffees took home rankings of first, second and third places amid non-Fair Trade and Fair Trade coffees alike — confirming that Fair Trade coffees are among the world's highest quality specialty coffees.
At the Fair Trade Cupping event, world-renowned coffee cupper Ken Davids and other coffee experts gathered to cup coffees from around the world. Cuppers included Beth Milardo from Equal Exchange, Mike Ebert from the SCAA Roasters Guild, Peter Torrebiarte of Starbucks' Green Coffee Division, and Marbely García López of the Nicaraguan cooperative SOPEXCCA (pictured above), among many other coffee authorities.

During the SCAA's keynote opening activities, Dunkin' Donuts' announcement to offer Fair Trade Certified™ coffees in all their espresso drinks nation-wide set the celebratory tone for the rest of the show. Other related events involved retail tours hosted by TransFair and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Equal Exchange's Producer Reception, and an info session led by the United Students for Fair Trade. TransFair's Fair Trade booth was consistently buzzing with activity as it provided an ideal space for the specialty coffee community to network.

It was a true "market meets origin" gathering. To date, $1,150,000 in additional Fair Trade revenue has been generated as a result of this year's SCAA Conference and the number continues to grow…