Poor Farmer

The company pays 111.3m Br as down payment for the JV it bought 51pc of By Eden Sahle Addis Fortune October 2, 2011 The Privatization and Public Supervising Agency (PPESA) is to hand over the management of Tepi Coffee Plantation to Green Coffee Agro Industry Plc on Monday, October 3, 2011, after the latter bought 51pc of the shares in the plantation. Green Plc paid 111.3 million, 25pc of the shares it bought, two months ago. The 10,000ht plantation rests in two regional states, with 32pc in Gambella Regional State and the rest in Southern Regional State. The plantation, worth 873 million Br, was first put on the auction block two years ago. However, the offer was cancelled as Green Plc was the only one which showed interest. It was retendered a year and half ago, and Green Plc’s joint venture proposal was accepted. Tepi coffee plantation was one of the three plantations under Coffee Plantation Development Co along with Bebeka and Limu coffee plantations. Be...

By David Friend The Canadian Press October 4, 2011 A random sampling of locations in the Toronto area suggested  a rough increase of about 10 to 15 cents for a grande bold coffee.  ( GREG BAKER/AP via The Canadian Press ) TORONTO—Starbucks Canada raised prices for coffee and other beverages on Tuesday at stores across the country. The American coffee chain declined to say exactly how much it’s boosting the price for a cup of coffee, but a random sampling of locations in the Toronto area suggested a rough increase of about 10 to 15 cents for a grande bold coffee. Other specialty coffees saw larger increases. A grande caramel macchiato rose by 88 cents to $5.03 at one location. The Seattle-based corporation said the price increases vary by region and the size and type of drink. Starbucks does not break out market specifics, so the company said it can’t be certain how much prices have gone up on average. The chain said the changes come as ...

A lack of rain has led some farmers to rip out their entire crop, according to one charity, but experts disagree. By Mark Tran guardian.co.uk October 4, 2011 Coffee production in some parts of southern Ethiopia has come to a halt because of a lack of rain, according to a British NGO, although some coffee experts predict a bumper crop this year. Plan UK is reporting that some coffee farmers have been forced to rip out their entire crop because of drought. "We had too much rain continuing for three to four months, and this year we have had a long dry period so now we're worried about the future," said Mulugeta Tafa, a manager with children's NGO Plan UK, in Ethiopia. Tafa said five areas in the south, including Gedio – where some of Ethiopia's highest quality coffee is produced – are struggling. "Coffee production is grinding to a halt in some parts of southern Ethiopia, due to a serious lack of rain," said Sarah Mace, disaster risk manag...

Ethiopia exports coffee, hides and skins, and beeswax, chiefly to Great Britain and the United States. The largest imports are salt from French Somaliland, cheap cotton yarn and piece goods from Japan, India and England, and corrugated iron sheets from Belgium and England. It is alleged that cheap Japanese goods have recently captured an increasing share of Ethiopian market. To Mussolini, control of Ethiopia offers a tempting solution for many problems of Italy and its colonies. In the immediate situation the development of Ethiopia would benefit the Italian construction industries, and political control might enable Italy to displace Japan as the chief supplier of cotton goods to the Ethiopians. Acquisition of territory, by increasing Italy's place in the sun, would direct the attention of taxpayers away from their economic burdens. War would further speed up home industrial activity and eliminate unemployment. An armed conquest of Ethiopia, to which Fascist principles are by ...

BBC October 3, 2011 The UK's largest independent coffee roaster Matthew Algie has increased its profits despite a sharp rise in costs. The Glasgow-based company said it appeared that consumers were determined to allow themselves little luxuries. Matthew Algie imports coffee to its Glasgow roasting plant from around the world and said poor harvests particularly in Colombia had restricted supply and pushed up prices. The company sells coffee to hotels and retailers for their coffee shops. It counts Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's, Gleneagles Hotel and the Houses of Parliament among its customers. The operating profit for the company in 2010 increased by 12% to £1.9m and turnover grew by 10% to £33.2m. Matthew Algie's chairman, Eric Hagman, said: "To have driven double-digit growth in both turnover and profits was a significant achievement for the Matthew Algie business in 2010. "This was achieved despite the ongoing economic...

By NGONDI MBURU and BONIFACE MWANGI, Special Correspondents The East African October 2  2011 East and Central African countries are opting for certification of coffee to satisfy market demands for higher quality. New players such as Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi are joining the certification drive while established exporters like Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia are aggressively growing their certified coffees, threatening to overtake Kenya’s dominance in the region. One of the biggest certifying bodies in the region is the Netherlands based Utz Kapeh. Others are the Rainforest Alliance, Fair Trade Labelling Organisation and Four C’s (Common Code for the Coffee Community). Out of the 1.355 metric tonnes of certified coffee from Africa sold through the Utz Kapeh certification scheme in the first six months of 2011, Uganda had 930mt while Kenya had 331mt, Tanzania 76mt and Ethiopia 18mt. Certification provides products with a label that guarantees qualit...

By Sean Sullivan The Province October 2, 2011 The country’s top baristas are in Vancouver Monday to face off in a national competition that will see the winner represent Canada at a world championship. Among those competing in the semifinals Sunday was Lauren Thu, a roaster and barista with JJ Bean in Vancouver, who wowed the judges with an espresso-based signature drink inspired by a Kir Royale cocktail. Thu, 22, deftly worked her espresso machine as two judges hovered with clipboards and a panel of four waited to taste her drinks. Despite the apparent intensity, she said it’s a friendly competition. “Backstage everyone’s friends,” she said. “We’re all asking each other, ‘Oh, what are you making?’” Six finalists chosen from Sunday’s 15 competitors will faceoff for the national title Monday, with the winner representing Canada at the 2012 barista world championships in Vienna. “This is a place where you get a chance to test your chops against people wh...