Education | Kilimanjaro Specialty Coffees

PETROCOFFEE: How has the petrodollar silently influenced the coffee trade until now?

3/26/2026

The price of your green coffee depended not only on quality, but also on oil, geopolitics and a monetary agreement signed in the Saudi desert half a century ago.

Since World War II, coffee has been transacted predominantly in US dollars, a direct consequence of the stability and global acceptance that the currency acquired following the Bretton Woods Agreements. But it was in 1971, when the United States abandoned the gold standard, that the system took a more aggressive and lasting form. Global trade needed a new anchor. Oil provided it. The 1974 petrodollar agreement ensured that every barrel of crude oil was priced in US dollars — and with it, virtually every commodity on the planet, including coffee. The most traded agricultural product in the world was trapped in an orbit that it never chose and from which it has never been able to escape.

The True Purpose of Fermentation

3/10/2026

As our new Kenyan coffee selection approaches Barcelona, we want to open a discussion about a topic that continues to spark debate within the coffee industry: fermentation. In Kenya, this stage of the process is particularly critical because its main goal is to remove the mucilage that surrounds the parchment completely. If this sugar-rich layer is not properly removed, it can over-ferment during drying, resulting in unwanted flavours in the bean.

It is often overlooked that all coffee produced worldwide is fermented. This is not a characteristic exclusive to experimental processes or a recent marketing strategy. From traditional washed processes to natural methods, some form of fermentation is always involved. The key difference lies not in whether the coffee is fermented, but in the purpose of the fermentation.

Critical week of cupping and selection in Kenya

2/25/2026

This week we return to Kenya for the second time this season to cup and select the lots that will soon arrive in Barcelona. More than just a buying trip, it's a crucial moment: we work directly at the source, side-by-side with exporters and producers, tasting each sample calmly and with discernment. As importers focusing only in specialty coffee, our responsibility is clear: to ensure that the coffee farmer's efforts translate into sweet, structured, and balanced profiles for our roasters.

In Kenya, we look for coffees with intensity, clarity, and balance. We focus primarily on washed lots with double fermentation that represent the classic Kenyan profile: bright citrus, blackcurrant, red fruits, and well-integrated floral notes, always accompanied by a clean sweetness and a vibrant yet harmonious acidity. We want structure and clarity in the cup, coffees that stand out for their intensity without losing elegance, allowing each roaster to express their own coffee identity.

1% for the Elephants: “Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.”

12/30/2025

This phrase, taken from Matthew 6:3, reminds us of the value of giving without seeking recognition. It calls for quiet generosity, rooted in conviction rather than applause, where the reward lies not in visibility, but in the common good.

At Kilimanjaro Specialty Coffees, we rarely speak about our commitment to social responsibility. Not because it is unimportant, but because we believe the quality of our green coffee should always come first. However, once a year, we feel it is appropriate to share how your coffee choices contribute to something beyond coffee itself.

Why do they have a Kalashnikov in a washing station in Ethiopia?

12/14/2025

It is a question that we have been asked many times. And the truth is that in many rural regions of Ethiopia, the presence of weapons like the Kalashnikov is understood from the economic fragility of the country and the enormous dependence that exists on coffee as the main community support and source of income for thousands of families who live solely from its harvest and processing. Therefore, when producers face the risk that trucks or organised groups try to take their coffee without paying, they are forced to protect their work with the means available.

The Ethiopian economy has seen progress in recent decades, but it remains highly exposed to volatile international prices for agricultural products and limited infrastructure, which makes access to stable markets difficult. The dependence on coffee makes each harvest vital, and any loss represents a direct blow to the survival of the community, which explains why armed protection becomes part of daily life in areas like Guji, where wealth is not measured in money but in bags of coffee ready to be exported.

WHAT IS SENSORY MEMORY AND HOW DOES IT INFLUENCE COFFEE TASTING?

8/15/2025

Memory is how our brain stores and accesses information from past experiences to understand the present and anticipate the future. It is essential, as without it, each new moment in life would be overwhelming and chaotic. It works in three stages: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. Sensory memory is the first step, briefly retaining the information that our senses (visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, and gustatory) perceive from the outside world, before most of it fades, leaving only a small fraction stored in short-term or long-term memory.

Unlike other species in the animal kingdom, humans are predominantly visual: around 90% of the information our brain processes is visual. This hinders the development of short- and long-term memory linked to the other four senses. For this reason, developing gustatory memory, for example, requires training, and not everyone has the same capacity to do so, due to differences in sensory receptors. Each person's ability to perceive and register sensory details is unique and is influenced by both physiology and the culture and environment in which we live.

Kopi Luwak: The Bitter Truth Behind the World’s Cruellest Coffee

8/8/2025

Kopi Luwak, often labelled as the most exclusive coffee in the world, is produced using beans that have passed through the digestive system of the Asian palm civet. This small, nocturnal animal eats coffee cherries, and the beans are collected from its faeces, cleaned, and roasted. While it may sound exotic, the growing popularity of Kopi Luwak has given rise to a dark and disturbing industry that thrives on animal cruelty, driven by the greed of farmers eager to profit from the high prices this coffee commands.

Originally, civets in the wild would eat only the ripest cherries, contributing to a unique fermentation process. However, as demand increased, producers began capturing civets and keeping them in cramped, filthy cages to mass-produce the coffee. These animals, who are meant to roam freely at night, suffer tremendously in captivity. They are often force-fed coffee cherries and denied a proper diet, leading to malnutrition, stress, and disease.

Could Trump's Tariffs Lower Green Coffee Prices?

7/17/2025

President Trump's recent imposition of a 50% tariff on Brazilian coffee, along with threats of similar measures against other BRICS countries, has sent shockwaves through the global coffee industry. This move poses a significant challenge, as the United States is the largest importer of Brazilian coffee, with trade valued at approximately $1.9 billion last year. The sudden disruption in this supply chain could lead to an oversupply of Brazilian coffee searching for new markets, potentially lowering both its price and the global commodity price.

With U.S. buyers stepping back, Brazilian exporters will likely turn to alternative destinations—Europe being the most logical next market. This shift could result in greater availability of Brazilian beans at more competitive prices. While this situation presents challenges for some producers, it could translate into significant cost savings for European roasters and buyers. Downward pressure on prices may help offset recent inflationary trends in green coffee supply, enabling roasters to stabilise or even reduce their costs.

The Bitter Truth Behind Coffee Festivals

6/26/2025

We've attended coffee festivals on four continents, and no matter the location, the experience is often the same: a celebration of competitions, machines, and coffee culture that feels very disconnected from those who grow the beans. The industry loves to talk about "origin," but at these festivals, origin is reduced to a booth in the least coveted corner of the fair that no one ever visits.

Rather than levelling the playing field, coffee festivals tend to reinforce the industry's most damaging imbalance: those at the top of the supply chain are the protagonists, while those at the bottom are marginalised or completely ignored. We constantly see roasters, baristas, and influencers posting endless selfies, but never the producers themselves. What's missing is not just representation, but respect. Festivals rarely invest in bringing coffee farmers in, offering translation services, or creating spaces for real dialogue about challenges at origin.

The Impact of the EU Deforestation Regulation on the Global Coffee Trade

6/6/2025

The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is reshaping the global coffee trade. Enacted to reduce the EU's contribution to global deforestation, this regulation requires that raw materials entering or leaving the EU market be deforestation-free, meaning they cannot come from lands that were deforested after December 31, 2020. However, the regulation's stringent requirements, including detailed traceability and geolocation, are posing significant technological challenges for developing countries, where smallholder farmers dominate production.

Many smallholder farmers lack the necessary technological infrastructure and resources to comply with the EU's traceability requirements. In some coffee-producing areas in Ethiopia and Burundi, for example, there is little to no internet access, putting them at risk of exclusion from one of the world's largest markets. Additionally, importers are stockpiling coffee to avoid disruptions, which could drive up prices and overwhelm global supply chains as the regulation approaches full implementation in December 2025.