from crop to cup: coffee consumption in colombia

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From Crop to Cup: Coffee Consumption

in Colombia

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Colombia is only beginning to define its character as a coffee-consumingnation. Coffee’s longstanding presence as part of the country’s social

fabric–from production through consumption–has set the stage for the emergence of a nation of consumers thirsty for quality and innovation as

in-home and out-of-home consumption evolves dramatically. By Rachel Northrop

coffee consumption in colombia

From Crop to Cup:Coffee Consumption

in Colombia

20 TEA & COFFEE TRADE JOURNAL | www.teaandcoffee.net

Colombia is a nation of 47.5 million people covering440,831 square miles, stretching from the Caribbeanto the Pacific and home to the genesis of the Andes

mountain range. Of its many millions of inhabitants, only563,000 families produce coffee. The labor of these land-own-ing families and of the thousands of seasonal workers they hireensures that Colombia is securely seated in the minds of theworld as a coffee producing nation.

The consorted effort of coffee producers has maintained thequality long synonymous with the name of the smooth,Washed Colombian Milds, but even during Colombia’s cur-rently rebounding production, the country is quickly becomingsomething even more important: a nation of coffee consumers.

Rising Production and ConsumptionIn June, the Federation of Colombian Coffee Growers (FNC)reported that production increased 30 percent from June 2013to May 2014 to reach 11.5 million 60kg bags, thanks toimproved renovation of farms. This year’s recorded harvestfrom January through May was logged at 4.6 million bags, anincrease of over 600,000 bags from the same period last year.

Production projections shared by the Bogotá, Colombia-based FNC at the National Coffee Association (New York) con-ference in New Orleans in March anticipate that productionlevels will reach 11.4 million 60 kg bags during the 2014 calen-dar year, which would mark the country’s highest annual pro-duction since 2008. In the same presentation, the FNC datashowed that of the 10.9 million bags produced in 2013, 1.2million remained in Colombia for domestic consumption.Colombians are drinking more and more of their own coffee.As Colombia’s production increases, so does the percentage ofits own supply that the country’s coffee drinkers consume.

Referencing the Nielsen Retail Index Coffee Study, TomaCafé, a Bogotá-based collaborative coffee promotion programrun by diverse industry stakeholders, reported in June that forthe first time in decades, the coffee category in Colombia reg-istered a positive tendency for three consecutive years, with a2.7 percent increase in retail sales volumes at the close of 2013.According to the study, the new tendencies highlighted are sus-tained growth–with roasted and ground at a 2.7 percentincrease and soluble with a 1.5 percent increase–and newgrowth of the specialty coffee niche market, which saw an over-all 8.2 percent growth in volume of sales, 3 percent of whichcorresponds to prepared retail drinks and 5 percent to grocerywholesale.

Colombians are tapped in to the development of the coffeeconsumer sector, with local and national press covering theincreases in domestic coffee consumption. On June 9th, thenational news magazine La Semana reported, “Market analystsagree that that country is experiencing a true coffee revolution.According to the census by Infocomercio, there are 10,900 estab-lishments that sell coffee in the country, ranging from specialty

cafés to neighborhood diners.” June 27th was National CoffeeDay in Colombia, and in celebration everyone from economiststo baristas tuned their radar to patterns of coffee drinking.

Traditions of Tinto and Café con Leche In the past, coffee-producing families would save coffee thatdidn’t qualify for sale and roast it over a cooking stove, grind-ing it by hand for home consumption. In the country’s urbanhubs, grocery store brands have offered various grades ofground and soluble coffee for generations. Drinking coffee athome is nothing new for Colombians, and drinking it out-of-home with friends at a local caféteria or pausing for a cup ofsweetened black tinto from a local street vendor pushing a smallmobile cart in the town plaza have long been integral to thecountry’s social and cultural identities.

Dr. Ana Maria Sierra, executive coordinator for the TomaCafé program, observed that even though tinto or café con lecheare still queens of the morning coffee routine, “Colombians arestarting to drink coffee in the afternoons. As Colombians lookto reproduce at home the same new drinks they’re buying atspecialty cafés, the roasting and processing industries haveenjoyed this opportunity to develop instant and ready-to-drinkcappuccinos, iced coffees, and other coffee-based drinks.”

As out-of-home consumption is tending away from tinto

COVERSTORY

Center of Titirbí in Antioquia’s coffee-growing countryside.

AUGUST 2014 21

or café con leche and towards the pur-chase of more varied and elaborate cof-fee products, serving sizes are increasingto match those commonly found inNorth America; international brandsare toiling alongside Colombian com-panies in forging a coffee culture, andthe larger portion perspectives theybring with them help account forincreases in consumption.

Juan Valdez: Not Just a Brand LogoIn April, Procafécol S.A, Bogotá, whichmanages the Juan Valdez Café brand andretail chain, reported that the companymaintained its positive growth trend dur-ing the first quarter of 2014. BetweenJanuary and March 2014, the companyshowed a 23 percent increase in domesticcurrency compared to the net profitreported during the same period in 2013.

While there are many domestic cof-fee roasting and retailing companies inColombia, Juan Valdez is the onlynational brand focused on preserving theconnection between farmer and cup. Theimage of the mustached coffee growerJuan Valdez and his mule is more thanjust a logo; all coffee growers who presenttheir coffee growing ID are eligible fordiscounts at Juan Valdez cafés.

The Juan Valdez tiendas de café (“cof-fee stores” as they are known in Spanish)

are trailblazers in attracting new andreturning customers. Frozen blendeddrinks, known as granizados, nevados orfruppes, are as much of a consumer drawin Colombia as they are in NorthAmerica, but the Juan Valdez stores alsooffer a different kind of “four-in-one”drink that have an added kick over tradi-tional three-in-one beverages: drinks likethe iced Wicao contain a blend of coffee,dairy, sweetened flavorings, and whiskey.

In May, the FNC reported that theJuan Valdez social media presence was akey component of the brand’s growth,with the Juan Valdez Facebook page sur-passing two million “Likes.” The FNCstated via a press release, “The strategy ofsocial networking has been to focus oncreating conversations, listening to ourfollowers and learning from them.” Morethan 1.4 million followers in Colombiashare menu favorites and post questionslike, “When will you be opening a storein my neighborhood?”

Emerging Specialty Coffee IndustryJuan Valdez shops are indeed opening innew neighborhoods, but they are notalone. Retail outlets, both Colombianand international, are rapidly openingacross the country to serve specialty cof-fee with particular regional flair.

The recent Nielsen Index study, as

reported by Toma Café, recorded a20 percent growth rate in out-of-homeconsumption, fueled by consumption ofespresso-based and blended frozendrinks. As Colombians explore coffeesbeyond simple tintos, a devoted sector ofconsumers is embracing specialty coffeeand continues to seek the cutting edge inboth drink quality and café atmosphere.

Amor Perfecto has been dedicated toroasting specialty coffee in Bogotá for 17years. “Fernando Velez, Amor Perfecto’sfounder and owner, has strongly advocat-ed for specialty coffee in Colombia,bringing the World BaristaChampionship to Bogotá in 2011,” saidLuis Fernando Tarquino, events coordi-nator with Amor Perfecto. “As a compa-ny, we’ve developed the concept ofbarista training. Colombians, definitive-ly, have stopped thinking that what weused to drink was the best. Now we’redemanding better coffee and asking forhigher quality.”

For consumers who value the art ofcoffee drink preparation as much as thefinal beverage itself, more and more loca-tions across Colombia offer this full sen-sory coffee experience. “Amor Perfectohas only one store, in Bogotá, which is an‘experience café.’ Our baristas providetable service and fully explain the coffeesto customers,” said Tarquino. “We work


As Colombia’s production increases, so does the percentage of its own supply that the country’s coffee drinkers consume.


COVERSTORY

with various origins, changing our offer-ings. This has been part of awakening thetheme of specialty coffee.”

Colombians eagerly anticipated theentrance of Starbucks Coffee in the coun-try after the announcement was madethat the Seattle, Wash.-based coffee com-pany would begin opening coffeehousesin Colombia in 2014. The first coffeeshop opened in Bogotá on July 16th.Starbucks, with regional partners Alsea(Mexico City) and Grupo Nutresa(Medellin) plans to open five more storesduring the remainder of 2014, a confir-mation that specialty coffee has arrived tostay as a component of Colombian coffee-consumption habits.

Nestlé Nespresso SA, Lausanne,Switzerland, is also moments away fromopening its first boutique café and store inBogotá. The company reported thatNespresso coffees, machines and acces-sories will be available in Colombia in late2014. Per Nestlé, a Nespresso boutiquewill open in Bogotá, offering consumers aunique brand experience designed tomeet their individual needs and prefer-ences. Nespresso machines will also beavailable for sale in the country at exclu-sive retail partners.”

Antioquia’s Producer Driven TrendsThe most vibrant trends in Colombia’semerging specialty coffee industry lie inthe subsector driven by coffee producers.For example, CAFECERT is the FNCoffice responsible for issuing a ProtectedDenomination of Origin seal to roasters.“The Colombian Coffee Denominationof Origin allows consumers to identifyand guarantee the superior quality of theproduct, and the other sensory qualitiesassociated with a given origin,” said LuisF. Samper, chief communications and

marketing officer with the FNC.The most elegant example of a quest

for quality service and beverages propelledby coffee growers can be found at CaféPergamino in Medellin’s Parque Llerasdistrict. Pergamino is the final stage of afamily-owned coffee enterprise, verticallyintegrated from farm to café. JulianMuriel, a barista with Pergaminoexplained that the goal of Pergamino Caféis to create a culture where customers lookforward to trying new and unique coffees.“Right now we’re serving La Falda, whichis from the only coffee grower inAntioquia to place in the top 10 of thisyear’s Cup of Excellence,” he said.

Of Colombia’s 15 coffee-producingdepartments, Antioquia is the largest insize and production volume. The largestcoffee growers’ cooperative in Antioquia isCooperative de Caficultores de los Andes(Cooperandes), based in the AndesMunicipality in the Department’s south-west corner. In an effort to afford coffeegrowers the chance to taste the productthey produce, Cooperandes created Caféde los Andes, a chain of coffee shops inthe municipalities where its members live,with a flagship shop in Medellin.

“In the cafés we use coffee that is cul-


Preparing a traditional Colombian tinto.


Bustling Café Pergamino in downtown Medellin.

tivated in Jardín, Antioquia at 1700meters above sea level,” said JorgeRestrepo, a barista and café supply admin-istrator with Café de los Andes. “Theroastery is also in Jardín, so the roast takesplace at the same elevation. We’re drinkingcoffee immediately after it’s been roasted,after an appropriate period of rest, sothere’s really no chance for the quality todiminish. It’s interesting that coffee fromthe region is consumed within the sameregion.” This new “co-op café model”brings the full specialty-coffee shop experi-ence seamlessly to the rural communitieswhere specialty coffee is grown.

Antioquia’s governor, Sergio FajardoValderrama, is a major supporter of thespecialty coffee movement and is buildingeducational campuses across the depart-ment, many of which will feature highend cafés serving the area’s best local cof-fees. “These Educational Parks show whatthe 21st century looks like and how spe-cialty coffee is part of 21st century,” hesaid in a speech to Antioquia’s young cof-fee growers in June. Café de los Andes

shops, and those that will appear in thedepartment’s educational campuses, serveas teaching moments; locals can taste sin-gle-origin coffees at origin, then purchasemore to prepare and drink at home.

Bringing Added Value HomeWhile the café scene is gaining rapid

momentum in Colombia, grocerystore purchases still constitute thelargest volumes of coffee sold in the coun-try, with whole bean and ground coffeeaccounting for 86 percent of coffee pur-chases by volume. Toma Café reported thatsupermarket chains have dedicated morespace and specialized signage to coffee dis-plays, facilitating purchasing and raisingoverall sale volume, and offer tastings andproduct demos, all of which make it possi-ble for the Colombian consumer to have awide range of coffee to choose from basedon preference and budget.

While considering both preferenceand price range, grocery offerings areincreasingly offering the added value ofsingle-origin coffees. In a producingcountry like Colombia, “single origin”carries more weight than in strictly con-suming nations: here it is synonymous to“close to home.” Ground and whole beancoffee sold through the co-op café modelis inherently single origin, being sourcedonly from that co-op’s sphere of activity.Other brands are similarly breaking down

Colombia’s gourmet supermarket chain LaCarulla features a premium coffee selection.

AUGUST 2014 25

COVERSTORY


the homogenous “Colombian coffee” into single-origin offer-ings. Toma Café’s Dr. Sierra noted, “We are seeing a wider vari-ety of coffee preparation methods entering Colombian homes.There is also a new tendency towards consuming coffees fromdifferent regions of Colombia.”

Procafécol’s Juan Valdez enjoys almost the same proximity togrowers as coffee producer co-ops, and accordingly offers single-

origin products from Huila, Cauca, Santander and Antioquia inits cafés and in its line of grocery products, including wholebean, ground and single-serve coffee in the form of pod packscompatible with Nespresso’s Dolce Gusto home brewers.

Collaborative Promotion, Consumer Education“Until recently, people really didn’t know what an espresso was;they saw it as something very strange, but now people are takingthe risk and starting to order espressos largo or ristretto, some-thing more specialized. This is due in part to the recent educa-tion people are experiencing around drinking different types ofcoffee,” said Restrepo of trends in the Café de los Andes shops.

A major impetus in consumer education and coffee categorypromotion comes from the Toma Café program, an alliancebetween producers–represented by the FNC–and national roast-ers, represented by brands sold across Colombia. EuromonitorInternational, London, cites Toma Café as, “an effective model ofcompetition-cooperation launched in 2010 as a mixedpublic/private initiative; an interesting example of how competi-tors can combine resources to reach a common objective. TomaCafé is a long-term initiative to increase coffee consumption andbenefits from clear internal rules and a fund to guarantee financ-ing of ongoing activities.”

Toma Café’s goal is to stimulate effective demand, promotecollaboration, and encourage competitiveness among brands.Dr. Sierra said, “Without a doubt, the coffee sector is experienc-ing a new and revived dynamic in Colombia: a tradition ofdrinking tinto and café con leche, an uptick in disposableincome, and an ongoing consumer promotion and educationcampaign–all combined with renewed product availability fromcoffee producers–has reactivated the demand for coffee.”

Toma Café’s market studies find that coffee is increasinglyavailable in all dining settings. Fast food restaurant chainsthroughout Colombia have developed spaces dedicated to coffee,and more and more fine dining restaurants have professional

(Left) Juan Valdez Café in downtown Medellin. (Right) Starbucks Coffee Company opened its first coffeehouse in Bogotá on July 16th.


baristas and full coffee menus. The country’s omnipresent neigh-borhood caféterias are installating espresso machines and auto-mated equipment that use instant coffee to dispense diversedrink preparations, rather than just brewing one large daily potin a continually heated greco brewer.

Amor Perfecto is also looking to promote coffee consump-tion as a general category, both by creating demand and build-

ing roasting capacity to meet demand. “What we’ve done to con-tribute to the industry is to help new roasters grow. But we’vealso worked towards increasing coffee consumption here inColombia, since, really, that’s what interests us most. Because, ofproducing countries, we’re one of the ones that consumes theleast coffee,” said Tarquino. That truth is rapidly reversing itselfas Colombians from costal Cartagena to Bogotá’s metropolis toHuila’s tiny producing communities become self-proclaimedcoffee aficionados.

Power of an Internal MarketCoffee growers in Colombia currently receive a “Protection tothe Coffee Grower” subsidy. Moving forward, a strong marketfor their product in their own country could create better priceprotection than any subsidy. Internal demand for quality coffee,coupled with an increased instance of microlots and interest insingle origins, makes for a dynamic domestic coffee marketwhere production and consumption can evolve in a symbioticduet, a market that learns from the past and encourages thefuture in a way that is singularly Colombian.

Rachel Northrop is the author of “When Coffee Speaks: Storiesfrom and of Latin American Coffeepeople,” a compilation of inter-views with people working along the coffee production chain. Visit:whencoffeespeaks.com for more information and to order copies ofthe book.

AUGUST 2014 29

COVERSTORY

Julian Muriel prepares La Falda coffee at Café Pergamino in Medellin.

[email protected] | (212) 766-5854www.ncausa.org

SAVE THE DATE!The National Coffee Association

2014 Coffee Summit will be held October 28–30th at the Hyatt Regency Boston in Boston, MA.

from crop to cup: coffee consumption in colombia

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