And that’s a wrap!
2022 is drawing to a close, and we want to take this opportunity to wish all our customer and supplier partners a safe and happy festive season!
 
For the past few years, we have been unable to connect in person, and in 2023 our goal is to reconnect with those far and near, and continue to foster valued relationships. We thank you sincerely for your support and partnership throughout the year and look forward to getting out and about to see you all soon!
 
 
REMINDER
 
Product deliveries and trading days over the Christmas and New Year period.

1.        Last despatch date to receive your order prior to Christmas:

• Victoria/Melbourne:       19^th December 2022
   
• All Other States:            Cut-off date for guaranteed delivery before Christmas has closed. Please contact your Bennetts Account Manager to place an order for December despatch.

*Please note: Your order must be processed by our office no later than 12.30pm the previous business day to be despatched.
 
2.       The Bennetts office and warehouse will be closed on the public holiday days of Monday 26^th and Tuesday 27^th December 2022. Our office will reopen on Wednesday 28^th December 2022 until Friday 30^th December 2022. 

*Please note: Orders can be processed and may be despatched/collected- subject to warehouse staffing availability - between Wednesday 28^th December 2022 until Friday 30^th December 2022.
 
 3.     The Bennetts office and warehouse will be closed on Monday 2^nd January 2023 and will reopen for normal trading as of Tuesday 3^rd January 2023, thereafter product despatches will be processed as per normal from 4^th January 2023.  

Please do not hesitate to contact your Bennetts Account Manager directly or our office if you have any questions and or require any additional information.
 
COLOMBIA 

Last month, Alex (our Key Accounts and Purchasing Manager) and Georgia (our Quality Manager) set off to Colombia to start our reconnection with supply partners after a long hiatus on travel.
 
Their adventures took them to the regions of Popayan (Cauca), Pitalito and Bruselas (Huila), Armenia and Pereira (Quindio), and Trujillo and Caicedonia (Valle De Cauca)…. Needless to say, there was a lot of flying and driving involved.
 
Across all regions, they heard the same story – the winter has been long, and the rains have not yet eased; giving way to the traditional dry season that starts in November. This has meant that the trees were in a confused state, both fruiting and flowering simultaneously. While some producers found the rain caused issues with the quality – others did not. The main challenge flowing on from irregular coffee development, was getting enough pickers to the farms at the right times to harvest the continually ripening fruit.
 
During the travels, Alex and Georgia cupped some interesting new hybridised varietals, which had promising results on the table. Overall, observations in Colombia are that producers are focusing on improving farming and processing techniques, with both varietal manipulation and repeatability of wet and dry methods. With the support of the FNCC (Federacion Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia) both large and small producers are constantly striving for better results. This was evident in the quality of the trees and coffee at the origin alongside the professionalism of the supply partners that hosted our team.
 

Georgia and Alex in Colombia 

MARKET REPORT

Following the spectacular collapse of the “C” price during the month of October, the coffee market continued its inexorable march south. In the space of six short weeks (or, depending on where you sat, the longest six weeks of your life), the arabica futures market was in almost uninterrupted freefall, going from about 220 US cents/lb to the mid-150’s.
 
This new 16-month low ultimately proved to be a bit of an “over-correction” however, so prices bounced and settled in what seems to be a new range, which now lies between 160 and 170 US cents/lb.
 

 

So why did the market fall 30% in such a short period of time, you ask? Well, as discussed last month, there is the issue of supply no longer being seen as a constraint, following Brazil’s almost picture-perfect flowering season. Of course, there’s still a long way to go, and there will no doubt be the usual doomsayers touting “potential drought in Brazil” before long… but for now at least, that is a major maybe at best. Nonetheless, we should keep an eye on washed milds, as Colombia is coming in with yet another “lower-than-expected” crop size, and Central America is yet to fully harvest its crop, amid the threat of high rainfall coming off the Caribbean over the next couple of months.
 
Demand, on the other hand, is seen to be the main culprit behind the dramatic drop in prices. Consumer demand on one side is tepid at best, as consumption of our favourite beverage is not quite back to pre-pandemic levels as we continue to face an impending global recession. On the other side, large roasters are just not returning to the market in droves, having taken a lot of cover at higher levels in order to head runaway inflation off at the pass… So as much as they’d like to buy, they are also in a bit of a pickle, with warehouses full of (now) expensive stock, which is not going out the door as quickly as they might have liked.

News of cold weather coming to the northern hemisphere as winter sets in might kick start consumption again, but to what degree, is the question.


A WORD FROM THE CUPPING ROOM

Last month on our Colombia visit, we stopped to see our Indigenous Community partners in the southern Cauca region of Popayan. The CENCOIC group (Central Cooperativa Indígena del Cauca) based here is a cooperative comprised of multiple Indigenous reserves that export their own coffee. Most farmer members of the cooperative have about 1 hectare of coffee growing land each, at an average altitude of around 1800 metres. Commonly growing varieties such as Caturra, Colombia and Tabi.

Coffees across all the reserves are de-pulped, fermented and dried at the farm. The farmers then deliver their parchment to the local collection warehouse where it is weighed and recorded before being sent to the warehouse in Popayan. In town, each lot is assessed for quality and then dry milled and graded for export.

The CENCOIC coop is Fairtrade certified, which means the members earn premiums for the certified coffee they sell. The funds collected through the Fairtrade premiums are used to increase productivity through the implementation of new agricultural techniques and the purchase of agricultural materials and inputs. Surplus funds are usually applied to health and social housing projects, training, technical assistance, and a savings and investment fund that benefits the whole group. 

In addition to the Fairtrade premium, Bennetts donates a further USD$1,000 per container to the cooperative to use on improving cupping lab equipment, quality control training and school facilities for the members children.
We have coffee from two of the producer groups (Munchique and Tacueyo) arriving early in the new year. Speak to your Bennetts Account Manager for more information. 
 

Misael Sandoval - CENCOIC member of the Munchique producer group