Welcome to Recap, a brief overview of recent coffee developments every two weeks from the Specialty Coffee Association, made possible with the support of DaVinci. 

World Coffee Events and the Specialty Coffee Association have announced the cancellation of the 2020 World Coffee Championship events due to the impact of pandemic-related international visa and travel restrictions. The 2020 World Barista Championships and World Brewers Cup were scheduled to take place November 3-6 at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE) trade show, which has now been canceled. The World Coffee In Good Spirits, World Latte Art, World Cup Tasters, World Coffee Roasting, and Cezve/Ibrik Championships were scheduled to take place during World of Coffee Warsaw October 15-17. The SCA is currently working with partners at the Warsaw PTAK venue to cancel the 2020 World of Coffee trade show and postpone the contract to a future year; more information on this will be available in the coming weeks. The World Barista Championship, World Cup Tasters Championship, and Cezve/Ibrik Championship will next be held at the World of Coffee Athens trade show in June of 2021.

More than 100 scientists published a signed statement to reassure the public that reusable containers are still safe to use amid the ongoing pandemic. Some cafés have stopped accepting reusable containers over fears of virus contamination. While studies show that the virus can remain infectious on surfaces, the scientists’ statement advises that reusable containers can be used safely once thoroughly washed with hot water and detergent or soap. Some coverage of the statement suggests that reusable containers could actually be safer if regularly and properly washed rather than single-use items that have been exposed to the environment before use. Others note that a washed reusable container could still become contaminated with and transmit the virus as it’s passed between a customer and server. As the environmental battle to reduce single-use plastic waste clashes with the measures taken to mitigate risk during the pandemic, there are fears that the push for sustainable and reusable packaging is being set back. While some packaging companies are attempting to leverage the pandemic against government initiatives to reduce waste, a ban on single-use plastics is still scheduled to come into force in Europe next year.

Xinhua reports that a Ugandan start-up, Volcano Coffee, is using coffee kiosks to drive domestic consumption. Focused on specialty Arabica grown on the volcanic Mount Elgon ranges in eastern Uganda, Volcano Coffee is hoping to shift the perception that coffee is only for export. Uganda’s population only consumes 4-5% of the coffee produced in the country, despite it being the second-largest producer of coffee in Africa after Ethiopia. In addition to growing domestic consumption, Volcano Coffee also aims to tackle Uganda’s significant youth unemployment by reintroducing them to agriculture through its youth academy, which focuses on the coffee value chain. According to Volcano Coffee’s founder,  Gerald Katabazi, a developed domestic market is less likely to suffer global upsets like the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s efforts come at a time when Uganda is also looking to expand exports beyond the traditional market in Europe: last year, the country had signed an agreement with China’s Yunnan Coffee Exchange and was due to feature as the China International Specialty Coffee Expo’s portrait country this year. 

This episode of Recap was made possible with the support of DaVinci. If you want to dive deeper into anything you heard today, check out the links in the description of this episode. Recap will be back in two weeks’ time. Thanks for listening.