How is the Organic Fair Trade Premium Spent?

Watch this video about how the Arinigata Organic coffee farmers in the Gayo region of Sumatra spend their Fair Trade premium

A Walk through a small village in the Gayo region of Sumatra Indonesia

Thanks to APKO and Arinagata coops

I want to thank the farmers of APKO and Arinagata for the time they spent with us, for allowing us to visit with their families and villages. We enjoyed our visit tremendously. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming.
I hope to upload pictures of our visit when I find a good internet connection.

Coffee Exporters in Medan

We were fortunate to meet with 2 coffee exporters in Medan on Saturday June 27th, Mr. Ujang, Fairtrade Organic Coffee Exporter and Mr. Sadarsah of C.V. Arvis Sanada.



We went to each of their individual warehouses, met some of their cooperative members and talked about how the coffee business is going and the impact the Fair trade and Organic coffee markets have in the Gayo region. There is much we learned and much to share, later.

They welcomed us, were extremely friendly and helpful. We made arrangements to visit the coffee cooperatives the following week.

Because we caught them in the slow part of their season there was not much in the way of coffee processing to see. Some sorting of the of the non-premium beans were being sorted by groups of women workers. The smell and taste, we were served many cups of coffee, was a wonderful step into all that is coffee.

Coffee Roaster Profile

During our stay in the Bay we had a chance to talk to Rouin Rahmani a local coffee roaster at the Beanery at the Alameda Marketplace. Everyone's story is so different with special moments of inspiration woven into them. This is part of the human side, both sides of the story indemic to the coffee business.

One Day and Counting

All is in disarray after several weeks of planning and gathering. I'm in a panic yet I'm not. This feeling is the culmination of all the details of our trip coming together. After today there will be no more room for second guessing and accumulation of required gear. thank goodness:)
We are heading into the wonderful land of Sumatra Indonesia for one month of exploration and adventure. We intend to meet up with local coffee farmers and exporters in the Gayo region of Bande Aceh in north Sumatra. We will try to profile the farmers, compare and contrast their life with ours in the US. What do we have in common? What are our differences? What are their challenges? How to their challenges and our lifestyle interconnect? What do they see as their future? How does that relate to our vision of the future?

I welcome any question you might want to ask. We only know of them through their coffee. They know of us through our media. They are the ones that nurture and grow the produce with care that becomes our daily pleasure. Lets get to know each other better.