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Established in 2013, Commonfolk began as a vision to change the way we think about and enjoy coffee. While coffee shops and roasters were cropping up all over town touting the virtues of specialty coffee, we were digging deeper to see if their claims stacked up. Turns out, the realities of the specialty coffee industry leave a lot to be desired.
What Is Specialty Coffee, Really?
We happily knock back our flat whites without realising the many, many hands behind the world’s most consumed beverage (after water). Meanwhile, coffee producers the world over are facing unprecedented challenges. 125 million people, that’s just over 1% of the world’s population, rely on coffee for their livelihood. Yet yields are in free fall, with traditional varietals succumbing to bora beetle, leaf rust and the mounting effects of climate change.
Would it surprise you to know that coffee production remains one of the most antiquated industries in agriculture? Smallholder farmers engage in gruelling, back-breaking labour, working almost exclusively by hand. Structural forces have kept production from modernising, entrenching the colonial divide between the affluent global West and developing countries.
The Myth of Specialty Coffee
Specialty coffee has become a commodity, a nameless, faceless industry. Accentuated by the supply chain: Farmer, Wet Mill, Dry Mill, Exporter, Importer, Roaster.
The majority of what we call specialty coffee entrenches and takes advantage of the existing exploitative system. We might consider it ’special’, yet the reality is that much of specialty coffee is anything but for the farmers and producers.
The specialty coffee industry is selling a sanitised reality. Suggesting that some of the poorest individuals in the world are happily posing for social media but at the very same time are leaving the industry en masse because they’re being paid below the cost of production. Something doesn’t add up.
The way we see it, it’s a lose-lose-lose situation. Farmers are continuing to be taken advantage of without the support they need to modernise and adapt to a global economy and changing climate. Roasters are supporting existing markets that intentionally take advantage of the lack of traceability and questionable ethical practices. And coffee consumers are left without the choice to use their power to support radical change and are none the wiser about the real impact of their daily cuppa.
Embracing Structural Change
Needless to say, without structural change the status quo will stay the status quo. If we’re to take on the changing world, we need to do it together. We need partnership. We need it, now more than ever. Partnership Coffee.
Farmer, roaster and consumer. It’s the common folk coming together for the common good.
Enough with the wishful thinking and the thoughts and prayers. The coffee industry needs to get its act together and invest as much time and money with coffee farmers as it does with flashy marketing. Seeing this need was the seed that has grown into our partnership coffee philosophy: A new vision for what specialty coffee can be.
This is our mission to fundamentally change the way we all think about and enjoy coffee.
Creating Long Term Partnerships
We are unashamedly for profit. Both ours and our partners, and that means instead of blindly buying coffee from markets, we build relationships with farmers. It means, as silly as it sounds, we know their names, the names of the children, their daily challenges and their future dreams. It means ensuring they're paid not just fairly, but what they need to reinvest in their craft, expand their operations, and continually improve quality. It means consistently; buying their coffee, not just once or twice, but committing year after year to help share the inherent risks that all farmers face. We focus our efforts on buying more from fewer; ensuring our impact on our partners is deep and long lasting.
For us, transparency isn't a buzzword; it's foundational to who we are. We're dedicated to exploring the genuine story of coffee farming, connecting our farmers directly with the drinker in a meaningful way. This doesn't glamorise the tough reality of coffee farming; it celebrates and respects it, bridging the gap between you and the origin of your daily brew.
Don't let the bad guys win. Drink coffee that does good for everyone involved. Partnership coffee isn't just about a better-tasting cup, it's an invitation to redefine coffee as an act of partnership, sustainability, and integrity. And that, folks, is truly something to wake up for.
