i think i was actually thinking of his piece on ethiopia, but if you read between the lines of the kenyan piece it points in the same direction 1. declining production bc of climate change, shrinking ag land & competition from other crops 2. high demand that means prices don’t fall even as quality falls 3. institutional & structural rigidity that prevents the market from reacting & obscures price signal generally these forces together push the average quality of coffee down while pushing the price up 4. (not mentioned in that piece) new processesing innovations, like yeast inoculation, infusion & various controlled fermentation techniques, offer low quality producers the ability to cheaply and quickly creating process-related flavour that’s very distinctive. these profiles are often popular with low-knowledge consumers, but if widely implemented they will tend to flatten variance between producing countries and regions 5. greater processesing precision new & cost insensitive demand falling volumes will mean that the very highest scoring & most interesting coffees are bid up pretty high and become luxury type goods. you can see this already happening. all this together will mean that what is now a pretty diverse market will polarise — the low end will get more homogeneous as “raw” quality falls and processing becomes standardised. prices will rise for demand supply reasons. the top end will continue to get more and more expensive (and maybe slightly better)

New job posted: Progeny Coffee Farmers is hiring a Production Associate in Berkeley, CA. @progenycoffee sprudge.com/jobs

Coffeed.com is back up and running.

This is the best overview of the business of Ethiopian coffee that I’ve ever read. Covers history, society, quality, & economics all in specific detail. Written by a buyer of green coffee who has traveled here constantly since 2014 Worth the long read: christopherferan.com/2023/04…

Today, the owner of Mandrake Rooftop and Town Hall, two popular restaurants/bars in the Short North near The Ohio State University posted this in response to Silicon Valley Bank closing. Both locations have OFTEN be accused of discrimination and racism towards Black people.

Cometeer isn’t the brand you should be cheerleading if you love coffee every morning and here’s why 🪡🧵

Democratic-affiliated candidates won control over the State Board of Education in Ohio, and one week later, the Republican lawmakers moved a bill forward to strip their powers. By @MorganTrau ohiocapitaljournal.com/2022/…