Fresh Cup Magazine

In 2016, while traveling through Uganda for work, Alan Lai met chia seed farmers out in the field. They were working in difficult conditions, amidst intense heat and choking dust, yet earning only a fraction of the retail value of their product. At the same time, as a buyer, Lai faced challenges in quickly and reliably assessing the quality of the chia seeds he wanted to buy.

✉️ This story was featured in this week’s Coffee News Club 👋 Get the Coffee News Club newsletter in your inbox weekly—sign up. It has been almost five years since the first Starbucks location unionized in Buffalo, New York. And more than two years after negotiations began, Starbucks Workers United still waits for a first contract. Over the past several months, the union has increased pressure on the company to finalize a contract, staging and urging customers to delete the Starbucks app.

Welcome to Operator Notes, a new weekly newsletter written by coffee operators, consultants, creators, and practitioners who spot trends and share insight on what to do about them. Each week, an expert working in the industry spotlight a learning, a takeaway, or trend they care about to help other operators in coffee learn and grow faster. This week’s edition is written by Garrett Oden, publisher at Fresh Cup. ✉️ Operator Notes: practical advice from people working in coffee.

Consumers are becoming more selective about the subscriptions they keep. A few dollars here and there can quickly add up, as streaming services, meal kits, fitness apps, and more pile onto monthly credit card statements. The average American spends more than $300 a month on subscriptions and memberships, but nearly half have canceled at least one service over the past year.

✉️ This story was featured in this week’s Coffee News Club 👋 Get the Coffee News Club newsletter in your inbox weekly—sign up. On August 15, Hurricane Lala struck Hawaiʻi, hitting the Big Island with up to 43 inches of rain and winds that reached 130 mph. Although it never made direct landfall on the island, the storm passed very close and caused significant damage. Three people were killed and many roads were washed away.

Welcome to Operator Notes, a new weekly newsletter written by coffee operators, consultants, creators, and practitioners who spot trends and share insight on what to do about them. Each week, an expert working in the industry spotlight a learning, a takeaway, or trend they care about to help other operators in coffee learn and grow faster. This week’s edition is written by Garrett Oden, publisher at Fresh Cup. ✉️ Operator Notes: practical advice from people working in coffee.

Extreme weather events are ravaging coffee farms across Hawaiʻi and Indonesia. Plus, a worker at Hydrangea Coffee Roasters accuses owner of sexual harassment, and unionized Starbucks baristas ask supporters to boycott the brand. 👋 Get the Coffee News Club newsletter in your inbox weekly—sign up. ‘Lala Took Toll on Hawaiʻi Island Coffee Farms’ – via Hawaiʻi Public Radio On August 15, Hurricane Lala struck Hawaiʻi, hitting the Big Island with up to 43 inches of rain and winds that reached 130 mph.

Are you buying coffee wholesale from a roaster? In our discussions with roasters about their wholesale programs, we frequently hear that they want to serve you and help you realize your vision. They typically avoid telling you about the struggles they face behind the scenes. But roasters have no shortage of struggles, and they secretly wish they could tell you more about them.

✉️ This story was featured in this week’s Coffee News Club 👋 Get the Coffee News Club newsletter in your inbox weekly—sign up. Have you ever visited two different Starbucks—either blocks away from one another or whole continents apart—and thought, “these stores all look the same?” There’s a reason for that: consistency is one of the key selling points of large chains, and it’s the reason why stores and restaurants like Target, McDonald’s, and Panera Bread look the same no matter where you go.

First there was the kombucha boom. Now, sparkling tea more broadly is poised to be the non-alcoholic beverage of the year. Brands like The Republic of Tea and MaraBela have launched sleek new bottled options in recent months, broadening the category and raising consumer awareness in the process. Sparkling tea is still a fairly new concept. Pioneers like the Copenhagen Sparkling Tea Company, Muri, and Minna were all founded within the past decade.