Brazil - Award-winning coffee sells for record price at auction

 

Japanese coffee shop buys Geisha coffee, from Fazenda Rainha, for R$84,500 (U$ 17,175 ) per bag

By Isadora Camargo — São Paulo

12/13/2023 05:03 Updated 5 hours ago

Geisha coffee, from Fazenda Rainha, from Orfeu Cafés, in São Sebastião da Grama (SP), was sold for R$84,500 per 60-kilo bag to the Japanese Sarutahiko Coffee, in the auction of the winning coffees of the Cup of Excellence 2023 The amount paid was the highest in history for a Brazilian dry coffee. The Japanese company won three bags.

The Geisha batch was the winner of the dry category of the competition, which is organized by the Brazilian Specialty Coffee Association (BSCA) in partnership with the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) and the Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE). Another 29 samples awarded in the Cup of Excellence participated in the auction on the 6th.

Japan is among the top ten buyers of Brazilian coffee, with 2.07 million bags between January and November this year, according to Cecafé.

The president of Orfeu, Ricardo Madureira, attributed the value achieved at the auction to the quality of the Geisha type and the dry method. “It is more difficult to achieve high quality in the dry process, because the grain is not washed after harvest. This requires getting the coffee collection right. By drying in the plant, the sugar from the pulp passes into the grain and produces a sweeter drink”, explained the executive.

Being more than 1,500 meters above sea level, coffee requires regenerative care, such as cover crops. The farm also maintains 35% of the native forest in the coffee plantation. “All of this increased the price of coffee at auction,” he said.

The auction raised R$1.5 million, after almost nine hours and three thousand bids. The value was reflected in the average price of the lots, which reached R$ 13 thousand per bag.

The second highest bid was given to wet coffee (peeled, pulped or demucilated cherry) from Fazenda Rio Verde, owned by Ipanema Agrícola, located in Conceição do Rio Verde (MG). The bag was purchased for R$40,700 by Grupo Cafeza, from Brazil.

The third highest bid was for fermented coffee from the same property, which reached R$32,700 per bag. The batch was acquired by the Chinese Decameron Coffee.

Companies from Germany, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Bulgaria, South Korea, the United States and Norway also purchased coffees, which Madureira considers a foreign 'awakening' of Brazilian beans. For him, acclaim helps transform internal consumption, generating a ritual similar to wine tasting.

Aware of changes in consumption, Orfeu wants to increase its participation in the specialty coffee segment, launching product lines in Brazilian retail.

The company's president revealed that, in 2024, a special edition of the batch purchased by Japan will be prepared for sale. The brand also started selling three new types of coffee in premium supermarkets (acauã, arara and japi) as part of its growth strategy, projected at 30% for 2024.FF

Café premiado é vendido por preço recorde em leilão (globo.com)