Past Crop Profiling: A Roaster’s Guide to Blending
Workshop Description: This workshop provides roasters with practical strategies for managing costs by utilizing past crop coffees without compromising flavor quality. Attendees will explore blending methods to balance past and fresh crop coffees, aiming to retain a balanced flavor profile that masks any age-related changes. Through hands-on tasting, participants will experiment with various blending ratios and roast profiles, discovering effective ways to maintain quality and consistency. The session will also cover cost analysis techniques, allowing attendees to calculate the financial benefits of incorporating past crop coffees in their offerings, ultimately maximizing profitability and minimizing waste. Every coffee deserves a loving home.
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 360DEF
Category: Brewing/Sensory
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the Specialty Coffee Expo Registration Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply enter your email address and badge code to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Sarah Cline Parker (she/her)
Green Coffee Professional, Tailwind Roasting
Sarah is the founder and operator of Tailwind Roasting Collaborative in Chicago. She has been in the specialty coffee industry for over 8 years with a passion for sustainable practices across the supply chain. She started her coffee journey in Colombia co-founding a social enterprise aimed at directly connecting producers with end consumers. From that time, she has had direct experience in most aspects of the industry, from café management, QC, wholesale, to green trading.
Trevor Jermasek (he/him) Roasting Director, Tailwind Roasting
Trevor has been in the specialty coffee industry for over a decade and began his roasting journey on a 1957-built UG22 back in 2010. Since then, he has worked with a wide range of roaster models and sizes, from refurbished vintage machines to modern builds. Whether it’s fine-tuning roast profiles or replacing drum bearings, Trevor has been deeply involved in virtually every aspect of coffee roasting and maintenance
Over the years, Trevor has worn many hats in the coffee industry, including barista, roaster, production manager, green buyer, and director of coffee. These roles have taken him from Java, Indonesia, to Cauca, Colombia, deepening his understanding of what it means to be a conscientious roaster in today’s coffee market.
At Tailwind, Trevor brings his technical expertise and lived experiences to support the team. His goal is to demystify and eliminate the arbitrary gatekeeping around crafting truly great, well-developed coffee.
Coffee Matchmaker: Multi-Perspective Cupping for Experienced Tasters
Workshop Description: Effective cuppers do more than just taste coffee – they catalog attributes to develop a high-resolution picture of each coffee and use this information to match each coffee with its ideal market. Since markets are diverse, cuppings must be able to cup according to different – and sometimes multiple – perspectives.
This hands-on workshop explores multi-perspective cupping, helping participants strengthen their use of the CVA Descriptive and Affective Assessments and become more agile in their ability to match coffees with buyers or consumers who will appreciate them. Anyone with prior cupping experience is welcome!
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 361DEF
Category: Cupping
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the Specialty Coffee Expo Registration Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply enter your email address and badge code to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructors
Rob Stephen (he/him)
Managing Director, Covoya Specialty Coffee
Rob Stephen is the Managing Director for Covoya Specialty Coffee in Providence, Rhode Island. Since entering the Specialty industry over 35 years ago, he’s worked at several nationally known coffee companies, and has had the opportunity to work in retail, roasting, quality, international development and coffee trading. In addition to being a Q Grader instructor for many years, he is also a Past President of the SCAA and of Coffee Kids, and represented the USA at the ISO council on international coffee standards (TC34:SC15) for several years. Specializing in quality standards development and supply chain optimization, he has lectured extensively at coffee events and trade shows around the world, and conducts training sessions regularly for the SCAA and the Coffee Quality Institute. Email: rob.stephen@covoya.com
Work It! Coffee Shop Bar and Workflow Efficiency
Workshop Description: Make your coffee bar workflow work for you and your team! Whether you’re in the process of designing a cafe space, or want to make sure that your team is working together, let’s come together to work on workflow!
In this workshop we will discuss the theory behind workflow management, examine case studies of different bar layouts - how they work and why they work, experiment with different approaches to bar layouts, and discuss not just the physical workspace but how teams can work together to be efficient behind the bar.
Whether you have one person on bar, or two (or more!) we’ll discuss the best way to approach drink order and how everyone can work together to ensure the highest quality of drinks is being served and your customers are receiving the highest level of hospitality!
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 362DEF
Category: Espresso
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the Specialty Coffee Expo Registration Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply enter your email address and badge code to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Selina Viguera (she/her)
Cafe Leader, Blue Bottle Coffee
Selina works for Blue Bottle Coffee in Venice, CA and has been with the company since 2010. As a Café Leader, she continues to enjoy her work as a barista, but also as a trainer, mentor, and coach. Selina began volunteering with the SCA in 2012 and has managed the SCA BGA Café since 2015. She loves people and coffee.
A Deep Dive into Cold Brew Sensory Analysis: Applying the Coffee Value Assessment
Workshop Description: With the expansion of cold brew in the global market, there is a greater need to understand how coffees will perform with this brewing method. Although hot cupping is familiar to coffee professionals, many are unfamiliar with cold brew sensory analysis techniques. However, if you’re going to brew coffee cold, you should also cup it cold.
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 370AB
Category: Cupping
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the Specialty Coffee Expo Registration Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply enter your email address and badge code to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Julia Leach (she/her)
President - Toddy, LLC
Julia Leach leads Toddy, LLC, a company that has been at the forefront of cold brewing since 1964. Julia’s team works with cafes and roasters worldwide to help them develop cold brew programs that highlight the nuances of the brewing method and inspire their customers to fall in love with cold brew. She is passionate about the art and science of cold brewing and is active in developing quality cold brew education for the coffee industry. She has presented at SCA Re:co, SCA Expo, NCA Convention, and also frequently presents at industry events around the world.
Coffee Buying: Sourcing, the C Market, and Contracts
Workshop Description: This workshop will provide an in-depth look at coffee buying for specialty coffee roasters. It will cover specialty coffee supply from seed to cup. It will demystify the coffee 'c' market, which is the benchmark coffee price for arabica that underpins over 96% of coffee imported into North America. Finally, the workshop will answer all questions about contracts and logistics jargon that frequently comes up when buying green coffee. The material is advanced/intermediate, but all are welcome and all will learn!
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 372AB
Category: Green Coffee
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the Specialty Coffee Expo Registration Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply enter your email address and badge code to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructors
Katherine Nolte Ferguson (she/her)
Managing Director & Head of Specialty, Sustainable Harvest
Kat Nolte Ferguson is the managing director of sustainable harvest and head of specialty trading for Sucafina North America. She has worked in the coffee industry since 2000. After completing her degree in accounting and music performance, she lived in rural Africa and worked in microfinance. She entered the green side of coffee trading as the financial controller for a specialty importer in 2011. She worked for Twin Trading developing East African coffee supply chains, helping cooperatives gain sustainable certifications and access international markets. She is a Q-grader and served as chair for the SCA Sustainability Council. Her passion is cultivating greater sustainability in the coffee industry. At Sucafina Specialty, she continues to invest success of farmers, roasters and the coffee industry as a whole. Today, she lives in Seattle with her husband, two young daughters and very big dog.
Electrochemical Measurement and Modification of Coffee
Lecture Description
Coffee extracts contain thousands of different compounds, many of which contribute to the quality of the flavor profile. Minor fluctuations in the ratios of these compounds gives rise to major differences in perceived flavor. However, to date the industry is only able to the measure the average total solvated mass (%TDS) or use prohibitive chromatography methods. Electrochemistry offers one route to measuring coffee components in real time and provides insights into both the quantity of compounds as well as their identity. The same method can also be applied to modify the flavors of coffee, through oxidation and reduction. Together, our approach provides unparalleled insight into what is solvated in the cup. This talk will cover the fundamentals of electrochemistry, a demonstration of its utility with a real-time demonstration. This work is supported by the Coffee Science Foundation and the Cottrell Scholars award, in partnership with Nuova Simonelli.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 362ABC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Christopher Hendon (he/him)
Professor, University of Oregon
Prof. Chris Hendon is a computational chemist with interests in energy materials and coffee extraction. He obtained his BSc. Adv. HONS from Monash University (2011) and PhD from the University of Bath (2015). After a two-year postdoc at Massachusetts Institute of Technology he joined the University of Oregon in 2017 as an Associate Professor of Chemistry where his research group focuses on materials with useful defects. He has published over 140 papers, was named a Cottrell Scholar in 2021, a Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar in 2022, the Samuel R. Scholes Jnr. Lecture for excellence in scientific communication, and has been awarded the Rippey Award for Innovative Teaching twice. In coffee, he authored, “Water For Coffee”, and has written numerous peer-reviewed articles on the topic. Presently, he leads a laboratory studying the chemical physics of coffee beverage production.
Elevating Coffee Expertise: Developing In-House Specialty Coffee Training Programs
Lecture Description
This panel discussion will delve into the critical role of in-house specialty coffee training programs for cafes and companies. We will explore the benefits of such programs, best practices for development and implementation, and real-world case studies to inspire and inform attendees.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 350DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Kathie Hilberg
Co-Host & Co-Founder, Totally Dissolved Podcast
Bronwen Serna
Co-Host & Co-Founder, Totally Dissolved Podcast
Changing Trends in the Prosumer Market and the Growth of Specialty Coffee
Lecture Description
The prosumer coffee market has seen rapid growth in recent years, fueled by the increasing popularity of specialty coffee and a shift toward at-home brewing excellence. This lecture examines emerging trends in the prosumer segment, highlighting how innovation, consumer demand, and cultural shifts are reshaping the industry.
We’ll explore the evolution of specialty coffee, including its impact on product development, such as grinders, espresso machines, and brewing tools. Key factors driving this growth—such as sustainability, design, and accessibility—will be analyzed. Attendees will gain insights into the challenges and opportunities facing the market, from supply chain dynamics to the growing influence of social media and e-commerce.
Whether you’re a professional or a passionate enthusiast, this session will offer valuable perspectives on how the prosumer market continues to expand, innovate, and influence the coffee industry at large.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 351DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Vel Genov (he/him)
Founder, Zerno
Vel Genov, founder of Zerno, combines engineering expertise with entrepreneurial vision to drive innovation in specialty coffee. Formerly Head of Product at Adobe, he applies his product development and customer-focused skills to create precision-engineered grinders. His hands-on approach and deep industry insight position him at the forefront of coffee innovation. As a creator of award-winning products and an active voice in the coffee community, Vel offers a unique perspective on emerging trends and the evolving specialty coffee landscape.
Introduction to the SCA Coffee Value Assessment
Lecture Description
An introduction to the SCA's new quality evaluation protocol, which includes cupping, grading, and attribute assessment. Learn about the SCA's definition of specialty coffee, how cupping works, and the basics of sensory analysis. An essential class for those who seek to understand coffee quality or cupping.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 361ABC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Julie Housh
Rethinking Climate Action: From Emissions Accountability to Climate Justice
Lecture Description
This lecture will delve into Cooperative Coffees’ evolving approach to climate action, emphasizing the shift from straightforward emissions accountability to a profound commitment to climate justice. We will discuss key findings from the Cool Farm Tool Pilot Project, which evaluates the impact of regenerative practices while revealing the complexities of carbon accounting. By highlighting the often-overlooked role of organic farming in carbon sequestration, we will also address the socioeconomic challenges faced by small-scale producers, especially in marginalized communities.
Participants will gain insights into how Cooperative Coffees reconciles business objectives with farmer empowerment through our Impact Fund action areas: grants, training, and emergency relief. This session will underscore the essential connection between sustainable agricultural practices, social equity, and climate resilience.
Join us as we challenge traditional paradigms and advocate for a participatory framework that prioritizes the voices and needs of farming communities in the fight against climate change, demonstrating how businesses can act as catalysts for transformational and sustainable change.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 352DEF
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Melissa Wilson Becerril
Impact Manager, Cooperative Coffees
Melissa Wilson Becerril is the Impact Manager at Cooperative Coffees, a green coffee importing cooperative formed by 23 roaster-members in Canada and the US. Melissa mobilizes resources from roaster contributions for adaptation and resilience to farmer-led initiatives and emergency relief. Previously, she spent ten years managing public-private partnerships for impact and learning from the elite of the global organized farmer movement - the organic coffee farmers who created the concept of fair trade. Melissa is a promoter of cooperatives, supporter of responsible business, and champion for smallholder farmers. She believes economic justice is the basis of true environmental sustainability, and can be found spreading this message anywhere from industry events to university classrooms.
Melissa has become a leading voice in the fight for climate justice in the private sector, speaking at B Corp's Champions Retreat, the Environmental Defense Fund's Race to Zero, the Cool Farm Alliance's Annual Gathering, Work on Climate's Success Stories, and the Sustainable Transaction Guide's Pricing Salon. Melissa brings her 15 years of experience anchoring corporate sustainability in deep listening to farmer leadership to the heart of the specialty coffee industry at its flagship event.
What Does an Importer Do, Anyway?
Lecture Description
Green coffee importing is a little-understood -- though critical -- piece of the specialty coffee supply chain. Often, importers are dismissed as “middlemen,” a term that minimizes both what they do and all they can offer. This lecture proposes to explain the full role of green coffee importers, the impact they can have across the supply chain, and the services and information that roasters and green buyers can rely on them for and benefit from.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Location: Room 360ABC
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Amanda Armbrust-Asselin
Head of Education and QC, NKG PACE & Marketing Associate, InterAmerican Coffee.
Amanda is a Q Grader and World Brewer’s Cup Judge.
Chelsey Walker-Watso
Head of Marketing and Green Coffee Sales, Atlas Coffee Importers.
Chelsey is a Q Grader, U.S. Brewers Cup Finalist and a Competitions Coach.
Health and Science Behind Filter Coffee Extraction Parameters
Lecture Description
The flavor, health benefits and safety of coffee are influenced by its diverse chemical composition, which is affected by various brewing parameters. Adjustments in coffee-to-water ratio, water temperature, extraction time, grind size and filter type can lead to changes in the final cup's chemical profile. These variables impact the extraction of beneficial compounds like chlorogenic acids, known for their antioxidant properties, and the presence of potentially harmful substances, such as acrylamide and furans. For instance, the choice of filter material can affect the levels of diterpenes like cafestol and kahweol. Understanding how these brewing parameters modulate both non-volatile and volatile compounds is crucial for optimizing coffee's sensory qualities and health implications. This lecture delves into the physicochemical dynamics of brewing, highlighting their effects on flavor profile and safety.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 12:30pm
Location: Room 362ABC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Agnese Santanatoglia (pr/pr)
PhD Coffee Chemistry, University of Camerino - Simonelli Group
Agnese recently earned her Ph.D. in Analytical Food Chemistry (Coffee Chemistry) at the International School of Advanced Studies. Her research, part of the Research and Innovation Coffee Hub project, was a collaboration between the University of Camerino and Simonelli Group, focused on advancing coffee science. She holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Pharmacy and a Second-Level Master’s in Nutrigenomics. As a visiting Ph.D. student at Ohio State University’s Flavor Research and Education Center, she studied coffee acidity. Her work explores the chemical characterization of coffee brewing methods, analyzing volatile and non-volatile compounds. She has published in high-impact journals, contributes to international conferences, and collaborates with academic and industrial partners.
South to North: Producer-Led Traceability and Vertical Integration in Specialty Coffee
Lecture Description
This panel, presented in Spanish and English, features Pachamama Coffee CEO Thaleon Tremain, Central de Cooperativas (COCLA) General Manager Vladimir Vivanco, and Cooperativa Agraria Orígenes del Valle de Lacco (CAOVL) General Manager Luke Agness. They will discuss how farmer ownership throughout the value chain allows them to innovate in traceability and maintain clear and impactful messaging. They will present and discuss the new traceability tool developed in Calca by the CAOVL team and adopted by COCLA and Pachamama Coffee.
Based in California, Pachamama Coffee Cooperative was co-founded by the producer cooperative COCLA from Cusco, Peru in 2006 and has since expanded to include in its ownership structure 4 other cooperatives globally. Their model has illuminated a path for other farmer groups like the CAOVL of Calca, Peru, to pursue profits downstream in order to ensure a future supply of specialty coffee and sustained benefits for the communities that grow it.
The panel will field questions from a moderator and from the crowd on how farmer ownership and participation in the consumer markets of the global north can promote innovative solutions to coffee’s uncertain future, amplify farmer voices, and promote transparency throughout the specialty coffee value chain.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 12:30pm
Location: Room 350DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Thaleon Tremain
CEO, Pachamama Coffee
Co-founder and CEO of Pachamama Coffee, a leader in farmer-led vertical integration for nearly 20 years.
Pachamama maintained its farmer-ownership model since its inception, overcoming challenges like lack of access to traditional funding methods through sale of equity.
Thaleon can speak to how this model sets Pachamama apart in U.S. markets and to its potential for replication.
Vladimir Vivanco
General Manager, Central de Cooperativas COCLA
Board member of Pachamama and general manager of COCLA, Pachamama’s founding cooperative.
Based in Quillabamba, Cusco, Vladimir provides a unique on-the-ground perspective on the difference between vertical integration and selling to external clients.
He represents over 1,000 farmers and can speak to the difficulties of innovating at scale
Luke Agness
General Manager, Cooperativa Agraria Orígenes del Valle de Lacco (CAOVL)
Co-founder of CAOVL in 2022 with 40 farming families in Calca, Cusco.
Worked with farmers and an NGO to develop the traceability tool which COCLA and Pachamama have adopted
Launched a roasted coffee brand in 2024 in the mold of Pachamama
A former data scientist and systems engineer, Luke represents 90+ families in the specialty coffee industry with an eye to how tech-enabled innovation can impact farmer livelihoods.
From Interviewee to New Hire: Expediting Onboarding and Training for Employee Retention
Lecture Description
Staffing a café can provide incredible challenges for small business owners, especially when you have high expectations of your employees to craft high quality specialty coffee beverages and hospitality experiences. We will be discussing our interview structure for potential hires, systems in place to expedite the facilitation of new hire training, and training programs designed to reduce time to proficiency. The onboarding and training process is incredibly costly to a business, so ensuring that a.) your new hires are properly vetted by multiple contact points in the company and b.) you're providing training that adequately prepares staff for their jobs can ensure effective staffing and employee retention. Having an HR and Training department that coordinates effectively with café management can decrease stress placed on the retail team and creates more opportunities for baristas to thrive in your business.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 12:30pm
Location: Room 351DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Reyna Callejo (she/her)
Director of Training and Innovation, Olympia Coffee
Reyna Callejo is the Director of Training and Innovation at Olympia Coffee Roasting Company + Moonrise Bakery. Reyna manages all new hire and continued education curriculum at Olympia Coffee + Moonrise Bakery, standardizes cafe service, and facilitates the development of systems and events that pursue coffee excellence for both employees and members of the Seattle coffee community.
Richelle Parker (she/her)
Director of Operations, Olympia Coffee
Passionate about coffee, hospitality, and creating supportive workplaces, Richelle Parker is the Director of Operations at Olympia Coffee and Moonrise Bakery, where she has been instrumental in the company’s growth and commitment to ethical business. She has helped scale the company from three to eight locations, quadrupling the staff while building the foundations of its HR department and managing multiple BOH departments. Richelle also led the charge in securing B Corp and Living Wage certifications, reinforcing Olympia Coffee’s dedication to social and environmental responsibility. Her leadership has strengthened company infrastructure while fostering an environment where employees feel valued and can thrive.
Carbon Footprint in Brazilian Coffee: Measurement and Reduction Strategies
Lecture Description
This presentation explores the practical steps taken by Sancoffee, a Brazilian specialty coffee cooperative and the SCA Sustainability Award Winner 2024, to measure and reduce the carbon footprint of coffee production. Drawing from real-world data and extensive field experience, Ana Claudia Silva will discuss how Sancoffee has developed methodologies for carbon measurement, implemented sustainable practices, and fostered a commitment to environmental responsibility among its member farms.
The session will delve into the cooperative’s efforts to build a carbon-neutral value chain through strategies such as composting, use of cover crops, renewable energy adoption, and the recovery of degraded areas. Attendees will also gain insights into the collaborative process that integrates farmers, cooperatives, and the broader coffee supply chain, creating actionable solutions to address climate challenges while maintaining high coffee quality.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 12:30pm
Location: Room 352DEF
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Ana Claudia Silva
Head of Impact, Sancoffee
Ana Claudia Silva is the Head of Impact at Sancoffee, a Brazilian specialty coffee cooperative with a strong focus on sustainability and community development. She has been deeply involved in initiatives to measure and reduce carbon footprints in coffee production, helping Sancoffee become acknowledged as a carbon-neutral coffee cooperative.
Ana leads key projects like the Bio Recovery initiative, focused on land restoration, and the Nascentes Women Coffee program, which supports female producers in improving coffee quality and achieving greater independence. Her work emphasizes practical approaches to sustainability, combining environmental leadership with tangible benefits for farmers and their communities.
With years of hands-on experience and a collaborative approach, Ana brings valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities of sustainable coffee production.
Coffee and Conflict: Real-Time Challenges and Solutions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Lecture Description
The escalating crisis in eastern DRC has devastated coffee-growing regions, displacing nearly 7 million people nationwide, many from key coffee-producing areas. Violence has disrupted agriculture, causing a sharp decline in coffee production and worsening food insecurity and economic instability.
One stark example: 1,000 of the 4,100 members of the Muungano Cooperative have been uprooted by conflict, jeopardizing their livelihoods and supply chains.
This panel brings together experts from across the coffee supply chain to address the urgent challenges and opportunities of coffee production in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a region currently grappling with active conflict. In this dynamic session, panelists and audience members will engage in a real-time dialogue to explore the complex realities of farmer safety, agricultural disruption, access/travel restrictions, and logistical barriers. Together, they will focus on strategies to mitigate risks and build resilience, offering practical insights for sustainable growth in a complex environment.
Join industry experts and panelists as they examine the impact of conflict on coffee regions and explore actionable solutions to address this urgent humanitarian and industry challenge specific to eastern Congo today.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 12:30pm
Location: Room 360ABC
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Panelists
Herman Chirihambali Lwango
On The Ground DRC Country Director and member of the Muungano community in South Kivu. Herman’s work focuses on the humanitarian impact of conflict on Muungano’s coffee growers and surrounding communities.
Marceline Budza
Founder and President of Rebuild Women’s Hope (RWH) cooperative on Idjiwi Island, Lake Kivu. Before RWH, Idjiwi farmers lacked coffee processing facilities and market access. RWH fosters entrepreneurship and self-management among women to improve community living standards.
Susan Heller Evenson
Senior Trading Manager at Atlas Coffee Imports, with firsthand experience exporting coffee from North and South Kivu, DRC. Susan offers insights on navigating logistical challenges in conflict zones from her years in the importing sector.
Richard Hide
Founder of African Coffee Connect and formerly of Twin Trading (UK), Richard has decades of experience supporting DRC’s specialty coffee industry. His 2007 visit to Eastern DRC led to a Twin partnership reviving the washed arabica coffee sector, recognized by the SCA’s 2012 Sustainability Award.
Moderator
Chris Treter
Co-founder of Higher Grounds Trading Company, founder of On The Ground, and Chief Instigator of Saveur du Kivu, the first international specialty coffee competition in the DRC.
Collaborative Approaches to EUDR: How the Supply Chain Can Support Farmers to Ensure a Just Transition
Lecture Description
Incentivizing efforts to prevent deforestation is a critical climate solution, as global deforestation is a major driver of climate change and biodiversity loss. However, the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), in practice, unintentionally places the burden of compliance on smallholder farmers, who are among the least responsible for climate change.
Actors from across the value chain must come together to support smallholder coffee farmers as we collectively work to end deforestation, while also ensuring that these farmers are not unduly strained by the requirements necessary for them to continue exporting their coffee into the European Union.
This panel will discuss how various players within the supply chain can work both together and independently to support smallholder farmers to ensure coffee is deforestation-free. Representatives from various sectors–from a lender and technical advisor, to a buyer, nature-tech company, and certification body–will offer their unique perspectives on the role and responsibility they have to ensure a just transition. Finally, we will hear directly from a representative of a producer organization who will share their position on the regulation and highlight how they can be best supported by actors throughout the value chain.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Location: Room 352DEF
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Elizabeth Teague
Elizabeth Teague is Senior Director of Climate Resilience at Root Capital. Elizabeth oversees Root Capital’s social and environmental due diligence and climate strategy, and is spearheading Root Capital’s work to support agricultural businesses comply with EUDR regulations.
Juan Pablo Solís Víquez
Juan Pablo Solís Víquez is Senior Advisor for Climate and Environment at Fairtrade International. He is the lead advisor on Fairtrade International’s climate and environmental strategies. Fairtrade International is a non-profit, multi-stakeholder organization with a mission of connecting disadvantaged producers and consumers, promoting fairer trading conditions, and empowering producers to combat poverty.
Roumaldo Pérez
Roumaldo Pérez is the General Manager of La Asociación Chajulense V’al Vaq Quyol, a coffee cooperative located in Quiché, Guatemala. The organization offers its members technical assistance, agricultural inputs, and credit to contribute to improving their quality of life and that of their families. Roumaldo will be able to speak firsthand to the impact of EUDR, and will share how various actors throughout the supply chain can support smallholder farmers.
Nanne Tolsma
Nanne Tolsma is the Business Development Director of Satelligence. He leads Satelligence’s major business-to-business partnerships. Satelligence is a satellite-powered geo-data analytics company delivering real-time insights into global agricultural production and supply chain risks, including deforestation and carbon.
Succeeding as a Coffee Retailer
Lecture Description
The specialty coffee market is booming, yet 62% of coffee shops fail within the first five years of business. How can coffee retail entrepreneurs set themselves up for success? This panel, featuring dynamic voices from successful entrepreneurs, mentors, and industry leaders, will explore different approaches to the industry’s biggest challenges - from bridging capital gaps to building scalable, ethical businesses. We will discuss the power of collaboration and design thinking, and showcase how emerging coffee shops can compete and win in the market, through tailored mentorship, funding, and community support.
This panel will also introduce the Coffee Futures Fund (CFF), an innovative, mentorship-driven funding model to double the success rate of specialty coffee retail. As the official launch of CFF, attendees will gain first access to a transformative program for coffee entrepreneurs.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Location: Room 350DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Akshat Khandelwal (he/him)
Founder, Coffee Futures Fund
Akshat Khandelwal is the founder of Coffee Futures Fund (CFF), a first-of-its-kind initiative that provides capital and mentorship to emerging specialty coffee entrepreneurs. With a background in brand storytelling and business strategy, he is also the founder of Coffee Owners Roundtable, a global community of coffee owners that he started during the pandemic to offer peer support and collaboration. Through CFF, he aims to transform the coffee industry’s success rate, helping independent shops thrive. At the SCA Expo 2025, Akshat will lead a panel discussion on the future of specialty coffee entrepreneurship and the role of strategic investment in scaling impact.
Using New Data Sources to Reshape Credit Access for Coffee Producers
Lecture Description
Managing cash flow is one of the most pressing challenges in coffee production. Producers face year-long expenses for farm maintenance, harvesting, and processing but receive payment only after coffee is sold or shipped. The financial crunch forces many to sell under pressure, reducing access to higher-paying direct trade markets and compromising profitability.
The global financing gap in agriculture is huge—estimated at $106 bn by Root Capital, roughly the GDP of Ethiopia—and traditional lenders often exclude smaller producers. Those that do qualify face slow decision-making processes and complex agreements that are difficult to navigate.
New approaches are emerging. Inspired by tech sector innovations such as Square or Stripe, some financing models use alternative data to assess creditworthiness, bypassing traditional requirements like balance sheets and income statements. Programs like Algrano’s Grower Capital, for example, evaluate producers based on customer retention, shipment delays, and quality claims.
This lecture will examine the impact of credit on producer operations, contrasting institutional lenders, non-profit institutions, and data-driven private-sector models. With insights from Majestic Coffees in Colombia, participants will explore how financial tools influence decision-making at origin, enabling smarter decisions, better cash flow management, and stronger market participation.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Location: Room 351DEF
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Florian Schaffner
Chief Financial Officer & Head of Data, Algrano
Florian Schaffner is the Chief Financial Officer and Head of Data at Algrano, and is managing the Algrano Grower Capital program in his role. He has a PhD in Economics and Statistics, and has previously worked for large financial institutions in Risk Management, Data Science and Commodity Trade Finance.
Fernando Patiño
Fernando Patiño has over 15 years in coffee with a journey that started in Huila, Colombia. He has a background in business development and technical training for coffee companies at origin. Now, he leads export operations at Majestic Coffees, where he also offers consultancy to producers and implements social projects.
Exploring the Impact of Nitrogen Injection on Cold Brew Quality: Extraction Levels, Caffeine, and Chlorogenic Acid Concentration
Lecture Description
Cold brew coffee has rapidly gained popularity, presenting new opportunities for roasters and coffee enterprises. However, producing it consistently and at scale introduces unique challenges uncommon to traditional specialty coffee practices. This presentation offers an in-depth exploration of these challenges and innovative solutions for cold brew production. Attendees will gain insights into key parameters such as Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), caffeine, and chlorogenic acid (CGA) concentrations. We will share findings on how nitrogen injection—both in gaseous and liquid states—impacts these critical variables. Additionally, the presentation will cover systematic approaches for long-term monitoring, including microbiological analysis to mitigate biological spoilage risks. By sharing our journey and strategies for improving quality control in cold brew production, we aim to empower coffee professionals to embrace this growing market segment confidently. This session will highlight the importance of scientific precision in driving consistency, quality, and innovation in cold brew preparation.
Date: Sunday April 27, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Location: Room 361ABC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a Specialty Coffee Expo entry badge. Register to attend Specialty Coffee Expo here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Amer Ba Shuaib
Reem Al Rashid
Dr. Fancisco Velazquez