The pause of the siege of Gaza is not the moment to slow down our support for Palestine.
The so-called war has by now been long revealed for what it really is - a pretext for the attempted elimination of the Palestinian people.
Those who follow us from the coffee industry, take note. The allegory playing out in which the wealthy and powerful create a reality via a coordinated system of information while the lived experienced of the most precarious reveals another, should not be lost on us.
All struggles for liberation are united. #freepalestine🇵🇸
Follow @palestinianyouthmovement and their local imprints for more information on how to get involved and build solidarity. Contact your elected officials. Dream of new worlds, and build them.
Art by @bashargram and @art.by.zam via @flyers_for_falastin
One of Semilla's most foundational ideas is to support smallholders on the periphery move towards the core of the coffee supply chain.
Here Brendan explains how it started and what this means for our work at origin.
Do you have any questions about Semilla, our work, the projects at origin or anything you'd like to learn more about? Drop it in the comments below and we'll make sure to cover it in upcoming posts!
Coffee producing countries are full to the brim with growers, exporters, roasters, cuppers, and other professionals with a depth of skill and knowledge that deserves serious respect. Yet, despite these abilities, one’s position in the Global South, in a community of colour, can be incredibly limiting.
Gate-keeping exists all across the specialty coffee world, and too often the burden of proof is on the same members in the value stream who take the most risk. Not only do we expect producers and exporters to understand our market and our needs, we also require that they provide impeccable quality in a timely fashion, and often, that they speak our language and meet our social customs.
Nowadays, one can purchase coffee by travelling to a producing country or simply by ordering samples from exporters or importers. In either case, the buyer is given the opportunity to choose the absolute best, and leave the rest behind. We can tell ourselves that paying a higher price for these coffees than they would receive on the commodity market is the good work we do. We can potentially buy again, if the quality stays up to snuff the next year. This, indeed, is Specialty Coffee Buying 101.
But what is the end game of this? Is our buying centred around the producer or the washing station manager? Or is it centred around our needs, defined by ourselves as coffee consuming members of the Global North? If it is the latter, what is the impact we’re making on coffee in each province, department, country we buy from? Are we improving anything?
As we say - Follow Truth, and ask yourself, "are you sure?"
Learn more about each project at semilla.ca or in our highlights!
Despite delayed harvests we are happy to announce that milling in Guatemala is going to start soon, and samples are set to arrive within the coming weeks. If you haven’t talked to us about Guatemala yet, make sure to reach out soon!
Swipe to learn more about recent developments and achievements in the project as well as our opinions on why all of us in the Global North need to become accustomed to paying higher prices for traceable and well sourced smallholder coffee, and what that means for our work.
Benito Jose Reyes is one of the most passionate members of the growing Pergamineros project based around San Agustin Loxicha in Oaxaca’s Sierra Sur. Last year, in our first proper exportation from the group, Benito rushed to ensure his whole production would be included, refusing to sell a seed to the local intermediaries that dominate the area. For years, he’s had only one option to sell to in the community and he’s made it clear this way of selling doesn’t interest him.
Benito and his small family manage a 2.5 hectare plot high on a mountain ridge, often ensconced in clouds, in the hamlet of Rio Granada. Here, one finds towering Typica trees that trace their lineage back some 40 - 50 years to the earliest plantings of coffee in the region.
Due to their age, their production has waned significantly, leaving him with a total of 15 exportable bags per year, if he’s lucky. He looks to his new plantings of Marsellesa and Gesha to change this, and with some focus on proper pruning, it may be possible to resuscitate his existing heirloom stock in the future.
As with most in the group, Benito’s coffee is managed completely organically in an agro-forestry system. He relies on a bokashi compost system in which ash, coffee cherry husk, and molasses, are mixed together with soil to create a liquid fertilizer as well as physical compost that can be integrated into the soil.
@kazkaracoffee in Detroit were Benito’s first client for his first lot ever exported under his name. Their focus on directly traceable lots from Latin American smallholders make this a perfect home for Benito’s coffee, and is one example of what Semilla hopes to achieve through our work — true recognition, proper compensation, and long term relationships.
Our third import to Japan has safely arrived and is now in warehouse! You can find the English translation in the comments.
グアテマラ、ホンジュラス、そしてルワンダより、第3回目のインポートとなるロットが無事入庫いたしました。
現在、検品およびサンプルローストを進めており、完了次第これまでお取引いただいているロースターの皆さまから順にご案内いたします。（事前にお問い合わせいただいているロースター様へは、今回入荷分のリストから順次お送りいたします）
小規模な体制での取り扱いとなるため数量に限りがあり、各ロットとも先着順でのご案内となります。あらかじめご了承ください。
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前回に引き続き、ホンジュラスの Sueños de Semilla からは6ロット。
ルワンダは baho coffeeより、カフェインレスコーヒーが到着しました。
そして今回、日本に初めて上陸するグアテマラからはMataquescuintla “Cafe Colis Resistencia”より3ロットが届いています。
彼らは、Semillaが関わる6つの生産者グループの中でも、最も多くの困難に直面してきた背景を持つ存在です。
Semilla Japanを立ち上げる以前から、カナダのロースター仲間を通じ、彼らの声を追い続けてきました。
彼らの置かれている状況は、今もなお続いています。詳細については、オンラインストアにて近日公開予定です。
新規のお取引やサンプルをご希望の方は、オンラインストアの［CONTACT］ページよりお気軽にご連絡ください。
We truly believe that we have the privilege of representing some of the most overlooked, and most talented, smallholders in Honduras. Here Jesus explains about our project, its goals, and the steps forward we’ve taken in 2026 to ensure the producer support and deep traceability that defines our work.
Those who have been following us and chatting with us have likely heard us explain that harvest arrived slowly in Honduras as cold temperatures and inconsistent sun led to slow maturation and very complicated drying. Now, with April behind us, the end is in sight and coffees are coming in quickly to the Sueños de Semilla bodega, and several truckloads have already been transported to the mill.
Jesus, Judith, and Erica have been working super hard to not only assist the producers with their processing and drying, but also to welcome producers into our new cupping lab where they can have the opportunity to taste coffee and learn alongside the team. Erica and Judith have also been closely in contact with the milling process, ensuring that the coffees come out clean and representative of the incredible work we’ve seen from the growers once again.
We will begin sampling out our first shipments in the next two weeks. If you haven’t been in touch, please reach out as we know these coffees won’t last long.
Eder Jimenez and the Jimenez family play a very important role in the Casillas and Nueva Santa Rosa chapters of the Cafe Colis Resistencia group. Eder’s brother Quelvin is an instrumental member in the group as he serves as the one and only lawyer for all their legal needs and represents them in any major delegation or court proceedings. As a result, supporting this family is directly connected to the sustainability of their legal challenges to the mine.
Due to Quelvin’s position, which keeps him near constantly occupied in the capital, Eder and his father Romeo are the ones who manage the farm and the post-harvest processing. Despite early challenges around drying which held some of their lots back, they have pushed through to produce consistently excellent honey and washed lots.
Their focus on Honey process has been primarily driven by an ecological concern - in this area of the Dry Corridor, water is increasingly scarce and therefore managing washed process coffees can mean having to transport water from Nueva Santa Rosa to their beneficio at a huge cost. Honey processing requires zero water, and allows for the family to develop a sweeter, fruiter cup at a lowered overhead.
Right now, our friends at @onetake.coffee in Hamburg have a bunch of very nice coffees on offer that were sourced by Semilla, including Eder’s honey processed Pache and Yellow Catuai. Roasted to maximize the sweetness and complexity for use as an espresso roast - head over to check out their shop as long as those coffees are still available!
Hey everyone, I’m Arved! I’m the Head of Content here at Semilla, which means when I’m not sipping coffee and coming up with new ideas for our Instagram, I’m probably somewhere at origin shooting photos and new content for social media.
Speaking of new content for social media, we thought it was about time you all got to know our team and all the people involved in making the vision and dream that is Semilla Coffee happen, so one by one, I’ll be introducing our team members here - starting with me (and that was not my choice, btw)!
As so many, I got into specialty coffee as a barista during my studies in Bremen, Germany, which is where I met and became friends with Wilts - our Managing Director in Europe - who was working as a barista in another coffee shop at the time, and we both immediately connected over our shared values and ideas about world politics and coffee.
Fast forward a bit, I decided to drop out of university, leave Germany and start traveling again to learn about coffee at origin, so with my last paychecks I bought camera equipment and a flight to Guatemala, where I stayed on and off for about a year. Through Wilts - who had started working with Semilla during that time - I learned about the Cafe Colis Resistencia in Guatemala and got connected with Brendan; a month later, I went to Mataquescuintla with Brendan, Pat and some roasters to learn more first hand and document everything with my camera.
After that trip, I was convinced of Semilla’s vision and work, and Brendan and Pat were apparently convinced of my photography skills, so I became part of the team - and have been stoked to be part of Semilla ever since.
If you have any questions about me or my work here at Semilla, leave them in the comments! And make sure to stay tuned to get to know everyone on the team! 💚
Welcome to our newest series: The Glossary. In these posts we will explain terms and concepts that are essential for a good understanding of how (specialty) coffee production and its market dynamics work. You will eventually find a complete glossary on our website, too, which is currently getting a full makeover!
If you found this helpful save this post and make sure to follow along to learn more about the behind the scenes of smallholder producers and the ins and outs of coffee production and specialty coffee at origin.
Continuing with our focus on the incredible women who form a huge part of Semilla’s sourcing, we’re shining a light on Celia Portillo, from Comayagua in Honduras.
We first connected with Celia via her husband, Clementino Ramirez, who comes from one of the first families to begin growing coffee in the Montecillos mountain range around the town of Selguapa in the 1980s. When Clementino was forced to migrate to the United States yet again in 2019, he left his farm in the hands of his son Disnel and his wife Celia as he sought income to relieve the financial pressure they were living under due to years of selling coffee at low prices.
Celia, during this time, did what so many women in coffee production quietly do. She took care of her family, managed her farm, and personally hand-picked the parchment of every kilo of coffee they exported. We talk a lot about the realities of women’s work on the coffee farm, but a whole new dimension is added when the realities of migration come to bear and women are often left to handle everything almost on their own.
Despite this, Celia is never one to say a bad word. Instead, she tends to her collection of domesticated birds, and approaches each day with the same focus as always - to push forward her family through coffee production after struggling for years to achieve stable access for the sale of their whole crop at differentiated prices.
Celia’s natural Bourbon is currently on the menu of our friends, Receiver Coffee, in Prince Edward Island. Chris and the team have been keen supporters of Semilla's work since our beginnings and have featured coffees from all our projects across their menu for several years.
As in the case of all of Celia’s coffee, this lot is complex and sweet, with a deep fruitiness imparted by the natural process. Go check them out and grab a bag while it’s still there!
A big thank you also @rebeccajgrossman for the beautiful photos!
Quietly, the dream is growing into a reality in Honduras. Sueños de Semilla, our sister company in the country, started the season with a new lab, an expanded collective drying complex and a new quality control and field technician, Erika.
Swipe to learn more about all the current developments and new entrants to the project!
Overall, we're perhaps the most excited we've been to get these coffees on the water and shared with everyone, Coffees have been delivered and milling has begun, and we aim to begin shipping to North America first. Pre-booking is underway now, and we will be moving quickly to confirm and ship lots as soon as possible.
If we haven't chatted Hondo yet, reach out!
