LTC comments, part 2

The conference was pretty amazing, with producers from all over Central and South America. Besides having several roundtable discussions and seminars about this new way of coffee trading we are all trying to navigate, we cupped together every afternoon. I was cupping with experts I already buy coffee from, and it was a great feeling to have a link and shared goal. After spending these 5 days with dedicated and innovative producers and buyers I feel very excited for our industry. This kind of progressive professional collaboration is the future of Specialty Coffee and will play a huge role in increasing supply and demand for high quality coffees, as well as playing a role in the continued economic development of some of the poorest countries. The thing that was most exciting to me however was witnessing the interactions between the producers from all over the map. I saw a kind of collaboration and trust that was very inspiring. Just like in the US, collaboration between competitors is a pretty new thing, but we have found that it has made us stronger as an industry. Listening to coffee farmers share their struggles and solutions with each other, I could just feel a kind of solidarity blooming. This may be the single best thing to result from these conferences. I made some good new contacts for coffees for us and have made some good friendships. My Spanish may have improved a bit too. Full transparency is definitely the way to go, and we have found that it strengthens us all along the way.