2022.12.01
Blogs
So hello and welcome. My name is Nadine Rasch. And I am the founder of Primavera Coffee. My story with coffee is an interesting one. I grew up visiting our family’s farm since I was a kid spent many weekends and holidays around coffee trees. However, I never thought that coffee would become my passion. It took me many years of living in several countries to realize that what I wanted to do was right there in front of me. After my studies, I was working at an investment fund when I realized that the way coffee was treated was not completely clear nor fair, especially to the millions of families that spend their life growing this product. It was then when I realized that I could make a...
2022.12.01
TYPICA Lab Kicks Off
We are excited to let you know that we have kicked off TYPICA Lab. In this project, roasters across the globe visit coffee producers worldwide. Japanese roasters traveled to Bolivia in the first series, which started in September. In the second series from October to November, roasters from Europe, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan stayed in Kenya and Tanzania, deepening their connections with producers and each other. Green coffee is the crystallization of producers’ hard work, skills, and knowledge. Roasters, meanwhile, try and do their best job to bring out the unique character of each coffee with roasting and serve it to coffee lovers. By visiting farms, roasters not only literally came face-to-face with producers, but shared knowledge through cupping...
2022.11.21
TYPICA After Hours Talk with 3-Star Roaster Raw Sugar Roast: Coffee as a medium
On October 13, 2022, day four of SCAJ 2022, TYPICA hosted the final round for the TYPICA GUIDE on the SCAJ Stage at Tokyo Big Sight. In this event, seven 2-Star Roasters representing different regions gave a presentation and brewing session, and a panel of judges and the audience voted on the best roaster. The top prize of 3-Star Roaster went to Yuya Kosakada from the Tokyo-based Raw Sugar Roast, and he was joined by judges KREVA and Chizuru Muko for a talk session at the TYPICA booth. Telling the story from the beginning Masashi Goto (Masashi): Thanks for coming and hope you all enjoyed the show. I’d like to start by asking the judges what they thought of Yuya’s...
2022.11.15
Everlasting Regeneration: Keynote speech by Eiji Hattori
In mid-October, 2022, TYPICA held its first Annual Meeting in Japan, focusing on the theme “SDGs–The start of a sustainable development generation.” The event began with an official visit to Ise Shrine, a symbolic representation of Japan’s spiritual culture and sustainability. Prior to that, participants had the privilege of listening to a keynote address delivered by Mr. Eiji Hattori. With over two decades of experience at UNESCO headquarters, including positions as the top spokesperson and special adviser to the Director-General, Mr. Hattori shared his insights. Coffee roasters and producers from 22 countries worldwide benefited from simultaneous interpretation in English and Spanish, enabling them to fully engage with Mr. Hattori’s speech. Sustainable development impossible through possession and exploitation “Man, the child...
2022.11.01
First TYPICA Annual Meeting Wraps Up
Last month, we held TYPICA’s first ever annual conference “TYPICA Annual Meeting” in the city of Ise, central Japan, and Tokyo. The overarching theme of the event, which ran for five days from October 10 to 14, was “SDGS: Sustainable Development Generation Shapers.” Around 80 people took part, including coffee producers, roasters, and other key industry figures, flying in from 22 countries and territories. The participants deepened their understanding of coffee through dialogue with a joint mission to improve sustainability of delicious coffee. The gathering featured various programs, each aimed at shining the spotlight on the work of producers and roasters. The participants also paid an official visit to Ise Jingu shrine and then attended SCAJ 2022, the largest specialty...
2022.10.15
Going a Step beyond Transparency and Connections toward Sustainable Development
TYPICA Annual Meeting came to a close at Tokyo Big Sight on October 14. Coffee producers, roasters, and consumers represented their countries at the TYPICA booth at SCAJ, deepening their relationships through cuppings and presentations. The final day kicked off with a talk session between Atsushi Yukutake of independent specialty coffee magazine Standart and TYPICA’s chief representative Masashi Goto. Yukutake has known Goto since before he founded TYPICA in 2019. Yukutake was also involved in TYPICA’s promotional tour, where TYPICA hosted cuppings for roasters in seven cities across Japan. Asked what he thought when he first heard about Goto’s plans for TYPICA, Yukutake said that Goto’s vision was so grandiose that he couldn’t wrap his head around it at first....
2022.10.09
Boundaries Dissolved: Roaster Visit in Tohoku
A group of coffee producers from Bolivia have arrived in northeastern Japan. As part of Roaster Visit, a multi-day tour of roasteries, the group traveled to the Tohoku region on October 7. Their itinerary mainly consists of meet-and-greets with roasters who visited them in their country about a month ago on a TYPICA Lab tour. The group and roasters celebrated their reunion with a warm hug. Among the roasters are Yudai Hashimoto and his wife Yuri of Aomori-based COFFEEMAN good, Kazuhiro Nagasawa of Iwate-based NAGASAWA COFFEE, and Yusuke Matsuki of Miyagi-based KEYAKI COFFEE. They all said that it feels surreal to get to see coffee producers in their hometown merely a month after they met them in Bolivia. During the...
2022.05.06
Honduras
Country of Honduras Honduras is located near the very center of Central America. The country shares its borders with Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Its capital is Tegucigalpa. In ancient times, Honduras was the epicenter of the Mayan Civilization. The Mayan Ruins of Copan, near the border with Guatemala, is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Honduras earned its independence in 1821 after a long period of Spanish rule. The country’s official currency is named in honor of Lempira, a warrior hero who led the Lenca indigenous group in its war of resistance in the 1530’s. Industry of Honduras Of Central American nations, Honduras is among the most strongly connected with the United States. Export to the US accounts...
2021.11.12
Tanzania
Tanzania is in the center of East Africa. The capital is Dodoma, but the former capital, Dar es Salaam, serves as the real capital. Tanzania is home to more than a hundred ethnic groups, the most famous being the Maasai. The Maasai still maintain their culture and continue to exist, especially in the northern part of the country.Tanzania’s rich nature and wildlife in the north, including Kilimanjaro National Park, Serengeti National Park, and Ngorongoro Conservation Area, attract many tourists from overseas. Many European immigrants including Germans still live in the north due to the history of colonial rule. The southern part of the country is rich in agricultural products and mineral resources, and trade with neighboring countries such as Zambia,...
2021.07.13
Indonesia
About Indonesia Indonesia is a chain of more than 13,000 large and small islands which is the fourth most populous country in the world. It is a multi-ethnic country with more than 300 ethnic groups living together and more than 500 languages spoken, and has a slogan “Unity in Diversity” since the time of independence. Each island of Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Bali has its own cultural diversity. Hinduism was introduced in the first century B.C. and Buddhism was introduced in the seventh century and flourished for a while until Islam began to be accepted around the end of the thirteenth century. Islam took root mainly on the island of Java and today about 90% of the population in Indonesia...
2021.06.12
El Salvador
El Salvador as a country El Salvador is the smallest country in size among the seven countries in Central America. The area of El Salvador is said to be about half of the Kyushu region in Japan. It is located between Guatemala and Honduras and is dotted with volcanoes and lakes with beaches that are famous as surfing spots. It hasn’t had abundant natural resources so its main industry is agriculture producing mainly sugar cane and coffee. The country hasn’t been self-sufficient in food production, relying on imports such as grains from other countries. Most of the natural forests have been lost in El Salvador. About 80% of the forests have been re-planted. Many Salvadorans go to the United States...
2021.05.11
Guatemala
Guatemala as a country Guatemala is one of the major countries in Central America. The capital Guatemala City is the largest city in Central America and has the second largest population after Mexico. The Mayan civilization flourished in Guatemala in ancient times. More than 40% of the population is indigenous and more than twenty Mayan languages are spoken today. The country is home to many volcanoes and a natural environment that includes volcanic ash soil which produces excellent coffee. Many tourists visit Antigua, Guatemala, every year, attracted by the ruins of the Mayan civilization and the colorful streets of the city. However, Antigua lost many tourists after Covid-19 and the economic impact is immeasurable. Guatemala was invaded by Spain around...