Ally Coffee becomes an accredited importer under the Cerrado Mineiro Designation of Origin’s Integrating the Coffee Chain program.
BY ASHLEY RODRIGUEZ
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE
Photos courtesy of Ally Coffee
This April, Ally Coffee announced they would be partnering with farmers in the Cerrado Mineiro district of Brazil under the Designation of Origin’s Integrating the Coffee Chain program. Ally Coffee is among the first importers to receive this designation, which connects coffee players throughout the supply stream and creates accountability at every step of the system.
At the Specialty Coffee Expo in Boston recently, Ally along with several other importers including Stockler/Neumann and Ecom was officially announced by the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation as partners.
“The Designation of Origin pioneers a new way to integrate the coffee chain, where each member carries out its role, valuing the producer, connecting to origin, and guaranteeing quality for consumers,” a press release announcing the partnership states. The Designation of Origin program began in 2013 by the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation and now spans over 100,000 hectares of land, including 1,069 farms, 967 producers, seven cooperatives, five warehouses, and three exporters—the scale of this project is one of its key achievements.
“Adding Ally Coffee as the first importer will broaden the scope of the Designation of Origin, which recognizes both the geographic provenance of coffee grown in Cerrado Mineiro and the agricultural best practices of producers, as required by the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation,” the press release explains.
“Our purpose is to integrate, develop, and connect people,” says Gustavo Guimaraes, agronomist and international promotion specialist with the Cerrado federation. “This new partnership with Ally Coffee permits us to influence the transformation and evolution of the coffee world.” The program is notable for the QR codes it uses to help roasters learn about the exact farms and regions the coffees they purchase come from.
Ally Coffee has strong ties to Brazil, and this new accreditation will continue to strengthen the ties between Ally and their partners. “We are proud to be a part of integrating the coffee chain, from the farms of Cerrado Mineiro to connecting their great coffees with our roasting partners,” says Ricardo Pereira, COO of Ally Coffee.
Ally celebrated this new partnership with cuppings and a signing ceremony at this year’s Specialty Coffee Expo, and you can learn more about this new relationship at Ally’s website.
