All those aspiring to evaluate coffee
quality from a quality control and/or from a marketing perspective, need to be
qualified liquorers first and foremost.
Quality control:
Identify processing and field related problems.
Offer
solutions.
Marketing: Identify
and describe quality. Make commercial value judgements.
Put a price on
'quality'.
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Review all aspects of the post-harvest
cycle, particularly quality assessment, especially liquoring, but also all other
relevant aspects where quality plays a role, including sustainability and food
safety issues,
Show the links between quality and
price; and the difference between positive and negative quality control.
*
Demonstrate how to determine cause and
effect of quality problems. Show how to offer and formulate advice and potential
solutions. Not only to operators further down the processing and production
chain, but also to researchers and policy makers.
Demonstrate how to translate market
signals into recommendations and advice to operators further down the chain, as
well as to researchers and policy makers.
Provide exposure to the use of
computers, data collection and analysis; Give basic advice on how to set up and
use a data bank; Outline the basic elements of market research.
*Positive: better
than average quality is rewarded by premium over average
price.
* Negative: poor
quality is penalised by discount from average price but no premium paid for
better than average quality.
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Formal certificated programme, during
the off or quiet season.
Open only to those already possessing
adequate basic experience, conducted by local and international
personnel.
Both in-country and/or in selected
centres in other coffee producing countries.
Follow-up on the job stages with
roasters and trade houses abroad for successful participants.
Such follow-up stages are essential to
'anchor' and expand the course results, thereby ensuring that participants
emerge with a thorough appreciation for end user (buyer) priorities.
Approach: technical sessions,
presentations, lectures and discussions.
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Good understanding of the linkage
between quality and different stages of the production, harvesting and
processing chain. Ability to identify areas for rectification and/or
improvement, and to offer advice.
Good appreciation for the fact that good
coffee realizes the best possible prices through the proper exploitation of
quality, correct presentation to the market, and the application of appropriate
internal and/or external quality standards.
Good understanding of market mechanisms;
end user requirements including sustainability and food safety
issues.
Good understanding of international
availability of coffee and competition presented by other producing
countries.
Better able to present and value coffee
resulting in improved marketing operations and market coverage.
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