Price, Pt 1 — How the C market works

This episode explores the strange world of the C market, where movements in the Brazilian currency or rebels boarding a random container ship decide the worth of a Colombian farmer's coffee. Yet specialty coffee still uses this number to price the coffees it says are anything but a commodity.

Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show.

Each episode takes one part of the farming business - agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales - and lays out what the best farms are actually doing.

Related podcast episodes:

Lucia: 

#64: "What Kind of Coffee Lover am I? How Much am I Willing to Pay for a Cup of Coffee?"

James: 

Filter Stories: The Hard Business of Selling Beautiful Coffee

Follow us through our newsletters and Social media:

Lucia’s Newsletter

James’s Newsletter

Lucia Instagram

James’ Filter Stories Instagram

People mentioned in the episode:

• Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador
• Julia Ortega, Finca Los Pinos, Puebla Mexico
• Edilberto Tovar — Finca La Esmeralda, Huila, Colombia
• Melissa de Gasperín — Rancho San Felipe, Veracruz, Mexico
• Diego Robelo — Aquiares Estate, Turrialba, Costa Rica
• Cristian Reyes — Finca El Rodeo, Santander, Colombia
• César Marín — Chacra D'Dago, Peru
• Gilberto Baraona — Los Pirineos, Usulutan, El Salvador
• Lalo Perez, Biofilia
• ASOPEP, Planadas, Tolima, Colombia
• Piedras Azules cooperative, El Salvador

Resources: 

• Record keeping and profitability analysis
• V-Hub (formerly Cropster Hub)
• Coffee Yield Calculator
• Cost-of-production calculator
• Fairtrade Verified Living Income reference prices
• Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide
• Chad Trewick interview on Bellwether podcast
• Heifer / ASOPEP / Fairtrade Tolima living income study
• Book: The Culture Map by Erin Meyer

Cover art: Nick Hafner

The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:

The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro