The Tale Of The Mindful Manager

It starts slowly, these things, first with strict limits—I’ll only check it when I open my laptop, I’ll only look once an hour—until there you are, in your perfectly appointed city apartment, with a closet full of inoffensively expensive casual wear, and like 25 pairs of shoes, but you haven’t left in days—It has been two days now—because the thought of looking away from that screen is just…well it’s just hard. Being in the position of authority, everybody thinks they want it, you know, they think that’s how you mark success in this life, but it’s hard, believe me. A mindful manager has to watch over his shop, his keep, his flock, and they know it’s going on, they know to expect my calls and texts and for the cameras to zoom their little whirrrrr along the tracking mount as they move to drop off a cappuccino, or clean up after the kiddies, or get the mop and bucket out of the store closet which, it bears repeating, I’ve told them twenty flippin’ times—Twenty flippin’ times Josh—to make sure that you’re bleaching (two capfuls should do it) the bucket and mop and letting it sit in cold water at least twice a week, because I’m keeping track. I haven’t actually been into the shop in a few weeks, oh cockadoodie, what has it been, a week a month a year have I ever actually been into the shop? Of course I have, I am the owner and mindful manager of this establishment and I last visited the shop on the evening of October 15th, to install the latest QUAD VISION ALERT CAMERA system upgrade, because I was an early backer on Kickstarter, and they were really, really overdue for an upgrade, the lag in the last version made it basically unusable after 36 hours of consecutive view time, tops, and it’s normal, after all, to want to keep an eye on your shop, expected, really, part of the job description, dang it all to heck, and part of what it means to be an owner and a mindful manager.

“You have to log a certain amount of hours to qualify for the OctoView Media Interface, and sir, you have passed the threshold.” The news came by phone, which crashed my dang app, which meant I lost three whole transactions across the bar—cappuccino, hot chocolate, chai latte—three whole transactions without my watchful eye to make sure my staff starts every order with a smile, none of this surly freaking attitude crap you get at other cafes sometimes, and then you input the order into the digital register (which tracks back all transactions to my control center), then you make a little smalltalk with the guest, how’s your day, any plans for later? Then hand back any change, or twist the little terminal thingy around and let them decide if they want to tip you or not, and let them know we’ll call out their drinks when it’s ready. When the shop’s closed and the action slows down I isolate the audio of every name called out, and store these in daily select files for future reference.

The OctoView Media Interface allowed me eight screens, which was pretty good, but the company’s Augmented Viewer interface really represents a step forward in small business monitoring technology. The shop opens, I wake up, cram on the Viewer, and in pixel-perfect 360 degrees across 32 discretely placed cameras I’m given complete control over every aspect of my cafe. I can see all the tiny flaws, the golldang bathrooms need cleaning again, and you need to bus the dishes. You need to run the bus tub. I’m calling you now—David, you need to run the bus tub. I can track every last rag and cruller. I’m there, and when I do have to set it down (I sleep with it on most nights) I can enjoy a near-stereoscopic viewing experience from the updated tracking app on my phone, which is pretty good but not as good as using the Viewer.

Monitoring your staff is important. Watching over employees makes the difference between a sloppy boss-pal and a mindful manager. If you don’t let your charges know who is in charge, if there’s no clear division between staff and ownership, if people don’t know their roles, don’t listen to authority, don’t understand that you are the owner of this establishment, the mindful manager, and not some charitable good-time giving groovy son of a gun running a chill place to kick it, they will run roughshod over you, make a monkey out of you, steal from you, rob you blind, eat all the pastries, give out free coffee to their idiot friends, and generally try and destroy you. The only way to meet this offensive is head-on, with a gosh darn clenched fist if need be, and constant monitoring, because that’s the way the world works, that’s capitalism, that’s how it is, I didn’t make the rules, I just know this world will drive you crazy if you let it. I haven’t slept in a week but I have to stay in control of this cafe and so I’m going to call again. I’m calling again.

David—you have to run the bus tub. My new interface, it’s a contact lens and cochlea implant actually with full digital read-out across the user-best 8 panel interface, controlled by voice, and so I could see it when David entered the walk in and I could hear it when the lock went click and I could even see inside the cooler because I did opt for cameras there, I did select the full coverage even though I know that’s an additional $49.95 for install and another $10 per month, but I watched him for hours as the screaming turned into crying, and crying turned into begging, and then he went silent and cold at around 4am, and two hours later Kevin found him with his heart stopped, because I can watch it again and again but I can’t be there all the time to help and of course I still have the file, of course, I keep all of it for reference, it’s about mindful management, I’m a mindful manager, I couldn’t delete it if I wanted to, but I won’t, because being a good manager is hard, it’s something most people will never understand, the burden, the burden, the burden, because sometimes good management is about letting your employees make their own mistakes.

Jordan Michelman is a co-founder and editor at Sprudge Media Network. Read more Jordan Michelman on Sprudge. 

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Guess Who’s Coming To Coffee? Populace’s Flight Of Fancy Is Back!

And so we meet again, my dear arch-frenemy. You may have got the better of me last year, no doubt through some sort of underhanded dealings the likes of which I have yet to figure out, but this year, this year is gonna be my year.

I’m of course talking about Flight of Fancy, Populace Coffee’s box set coffee/origin matching game, and it is now on pre-order.

Back for a fourth year, Flight of Fancy is the ultimate home cupping competition. Like with previous years, each box set comes with four bags of coffee from unknown origins that tasters must figure out in order to be declared the winner. But this year, Populace has included a Guess Who?-style game to help aid in deciphering the origins. Each bag of coffee corresponds to a row on the game board, each row containing six potential origins for the coffee in question.

All you have to do is pick the right origins (and be the first to submit the correct answers on December 15^th and post a photo of your game board to Instagram using the hashtag #☕FOF2017) and you could be the owner of a brand new La Marzocco Linea Mini!

Other prizes include a Baratza Sette 270 grinder for the second fastest entry to get all four correct, two tickets to Disney World or Disneyland for Best Dopplegänger (best photo of someone who looks like one of the people on the game board), and “golden ticket” prizes that include a six-moth subscription to Angels’ Cup, an Acaia scale, or a Fellow Stagg EKG electric kettle.

The coffees will ship some time between the fourth and eighth of December. For more information or to order a Flight of Fancy box set, visit Populace Coffee’s official website. Or just sit this one out. This year is my year I can just feel it. I will not be denied.

Zac Cadwalader is the news editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.

Populace Coffee is an advertising partner on the Sprudge Media Network.

*all media via Populace Coffee

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The Tale Of The Cold Brew Place

“Justin, barista camp? You’re going to a fucking barista camp?!”

I rolled my eyes and chuckled as I continued to pack my weekend bag. This was the type of reaction I was used to receiving from friends and family who weren’t into coffee. Especially my Black friends and family.

“Yes, I’m going to a barista camp,” I replied mockingly. “And not just any one, either. It’s for the BGA Level 3. You have to be recommended and invited to attend. This shit’s exclusive. I’m going to leave as one of the highest qualified baristas in the world!”

My best friend, Damien, laid back further into my couch and shook his head.

“Look, I’m all about encouraging Black excellence—even in coffee—but why you gotta do all that out in the middle of the woods? Bro, we’re in the South. I don’t care if you can draw Kehinde Wiley portraits on a latte. The Chattahoochee National Forest is out there, and let’s be real—white coffee people scare me.”

I threw my head back in laughter, tossing in the last of my clean, customized coffee wares and zipped up the bag.

“Why, because they’re ‘too nice’?”

“EXACTLY! And they like cold brew way too damn much!”

Damien stood, straightened up, and smiled creepily at me. He started to reenact a barista behind a bar. “‘Would you like a cold brew flight today? They’re the same coffee processed in different ways! This one tastes like juniper berries, this one has more notes of elderflower and black currant, and this one right here…”—he stopped to throw in a condescending chuckle—“this one is extra special. It was grown so high up, the beans were touched by the light of God up in Heaven and they say you see the Golden Gates when you drink it.’”

We both burst into a fit of laughter. Damien was a trip, but he wasn’t wrong either. He spent many hours hanging out at the coffee shop I worked at in Atlanta, always watching and poking fun at the culture that came with it. But Damien was my biggest supporter, and in an industry where I was usually the only Black face in a sea of white, I appreciated him hyping me up and keeping me grounded.

A car horn honked a couple of times outside of my window.

“Alright, bro. That’s Karen, so I gotta go.” Damien and I dapped each other up and I started to leave.

“Be safe out there!! Don’t trust nobody. Especially people who drink cold brew.”

————

“Are you excited for Barista Camp?” Karen was the Director of Education at my coffee shop. She took a sip of her cold brew and smiled over at me in the passenger seat.

We were about halfway through the three-hour drive to the northern part of Georgia from Atlanta. We spent most of the time talking about our shop dynamics and things we’d like to see improve. Karen had been working at our shop for ten years, having trained many baristas who went on to do great things in coffee.

I was shocked when she told me she recommended me for this Barista Camp that was exclusively for those seeking to be Level 3-certified. The BGA had been working on the Level 3 certification for years, but most of us thought it would never end up happening. I worked multiple jobs to pay to get my Level 1 and 2’s before I landed this job. When I got the official invitation and our boss offered to cover the costs, I felt like all my hard work had finally paid off.

“Yeah, it’s cool,” I shrugged, trying to mask my actual excitement. “Since you know the organizers, anything I should expect? You know… besides probably being the only Black guy there?”

“Oh, come on,” Karen shot me one of those looks.

“I’m just saying! We don’t have to act like it’s not true!” I threw my hands up in the air and my hand knocked the cold brew out of hers, spilling it everywhere. “I’m so sorr- OH SHIT!”

The car veered off into the opposite lane as she let go of the steering wheel to grab the cup. In an instant I grabbed the wheel and swerved as hard as I could, lurching the car back into our lane, just as an oncoming truck went roaring past. Karen slammed brakes slammed and we sat silently, breathing heavily in a state of shock.

“You good?” I asked. She unfastened her seatbelt and stepped out of the car to examine her pants. A few seconds passed before she started laughing. I guess the adrenaline and caffeine was starting to settle.

I hopped out too and chuckled a little with her. I looked both ways down the empty two-lane highway. Tall, lush trees lined the road for miles and the sun was starting to descend.

“That was wild!” Karen exclaimed.

“Yeah, I guess…” I started to say, and then I noticed the lights flashing red and blue. My voice trailed as a cop pulled up behind our car.

“Is everything alright here, folks?” A tall, white sheriff stepped out of his vehicle and walked over to us suspiciously. He gave Karen a glance but turned most of his attention towards me. Middle of nowhere Georgia? Of course.

“Yeah, everything’s fine, officer. Just spilled coffee on myself while driving and needed to stop, is all,” Karen replied with a calm laugh. I just stood silently. The sheriff’s eyes did not move from me.

“Where you two headed?” He pointed at the road ahead of us.

“Oh, we’re going to a barista camp,” Karen told the officer. I was fine with her taking the lead on this one.

“Barista camp, huh?” The sheriff’s eyes narrowed a bit. “You like coffee, son?”

I nodded, still quiet, but felt uncomfortable with the amount of attention I was receiving.

“Yup! We’re huge coffee nerds, and we kind of have to get going if there’s nothing else…?” Karen stepped slightly within the sheriff’s line of sight to garner his attention. He tipped his hat to her before giving me one last look, then left. I sighed in relief.

“That was awkward,” I said.

“Oh, whatever,” said Karen. She tossed me the keys. “You drive the rest of the way.”

————

After what seemed like forever, driving deeper and deeper into the woods, we pulled up to a massive house tucked away along the edge of the forest. It was freshly painted pale grey and had a wraparound porch. We were miles off the main road, and all you could hear were birds and the wind rustling through the trees.

A man and a woman stepped out from inside the house and waved to us. Karen almost didn’t let me finish parking before jumping out to run and greet them on the porch. I approached the group while they hugged each other.

“And you must be the barista Karen says will be the next best thing in coffee!” The man was not much taller than me. He donned a short beard and glasses. His La Marzocco-branded five panel hat was brand new and his plaid shirt was tucked just a little too perfectly into his jeans.

“I’m Justin,” I said reaching for a hand shake.

“Oh, we don’t have to be so formal! We’re all homies here,” He laughed with a wink. “I’m Dave.” The world’s worst attempt at a dap was made between us, but I brushed it off and laughed along with him. “And this right here is Molly.” Dave reached back to introduce his partner, a small woman in a grey “NASTY WOMAN” t-shirt and tattoos on both arms.

“We’re really happy to have you here, Justin,” said Molly.

“Molly and Dave own one of the best coffee companies in the US and mentored me when I was first starting out. They’re the reason why we even have a Level 3,” Karen spoke proudly. “And they built this entire camp facility just for the test!”

Everyone smiled at each other. You could feel the history between them, and I was about to be a part of it.

———

The entire property was a wonderland for coffee pros. There was a room lined with state-of-the-art sample roasters, and another filled with white powder-coated Linea Minis with light wood accents. The nicest grinders on the market—EK-43’s, Mythos 2’s, Lux D’s—they were all here. The cupping lab was separate from the house and doubled as a classroom in the backyard in an all-glass enclosure.

I walked around the property alone, taking photos with my phone and posing for Snapchats I sent back to Damien.

“Did you see the roaster’s cabin yet?” A deep voice with a slight Australian accent came out of nowhere, startling me. I turned to see one of the biggest faces in coffee smiling smugly. Jarrydd Reeves was a career barista competitor, having won both the Australian and United States Barista Championship across several seasons. Jarrydd (two r’s, two d’s and a y) was a good-looking Australian white guy, cocky and brash, who moved from Melbourne a few years ago to Portland to conquer America. Jarrydd’s resume included brief stints at some of the best coffee shops in the world, but he’d never to win the big one—he was many things, after many years trying, but he was not a World Barista Champion.  And so he continued to compete every year, and the entire industry seemed to shift in whatever direction he set through those routines.

“Ha, what’s that?” I snapped another pic of the cupping lab.

“It’s Justin, right?” he asked me. I nodded. “C’mon, I’ll show you.”

We walked about a hundred feet down a dirt path deeper into the woods. Talking with Jarrydd was more like a monologue: he spoke mostly about himself, his thoughts on coffee, and plans he had for competition in the upcoming season. He was an instructor at the camp, too.

“You know, distribution tools really are a game-changer,” Jarrydd said to me. “Espresso is just so much better. I’m talking 26% extraction, bruv!”

“Eh, I don’t think they make that much of a difference,” I said shrugging. Jarrydd grabbed my shoulder tight to stop me. I looked down at his hand then back at him. He was shaking his head.

“Dog—I can call you that, right?—have you ever tested an espresso with a refractometer with and without a distribution tool. The consistency, dog. The consistency. Do you even know what a refractometer is?”

“Yeah, dog,” I said while removing his hand from my shoulder and rolling my eyes.

We approached a small cabin with smoke exiting the chimney. Chaff fell gently from above and the air smelled like warm cookies and popcorn. Someone was roasting.

Jarrydd opened the door into the cabin. A deep red, 25-lb San Franciscan sat in the middle of the one-room cabin while coffee beans turned in the cooling tray. A fresh batch of green was going inside the roaster. Cupping bowls and spoons were neatly set up on a small, round table on the other side of the room. A poster of the Counter Culture flavor wheel was up on the wall. Underneath it were a palette of green coffee bags with the Ninety Plus Coffee logo on every single one.

“Isn’t this tight?” Jarrydd exclaimed, stepping over to the other side of the roaster to where I couldn’t see him. I took a few photos and posted a video to social media. “Yo, come meet the roaster!”

Jarrydd was standing by a desk situated in the corner behind the roaster where sat a clean-shaven, skinny Black man wearing a “Filter Coffee, Not People” t-shirt. He hunched over a laptop analyzing roast curves. I was relieved to see him.

“Hello, my name is Adrian,” said the man standing up. His voice was monotone, but polite. He probably had been in here roasting for hours.

“Wassup, man. It’s real good to meet you.” My tone was seeping with subtext. I went to bump fists but he grabbed it instead. “Oh, haha….” I went in for a handshake instead.

“Adrian’s been roasting for Molly and Dave for a real long time. He’s one of the good ones!” Jarrydd hugged Adrian’s shoulders and smiled. Adrian returned the smile but something felt off.

“This is a cool setup you’ve got here,” I said looking around. “Mind if I snap a pic?”

“Yeah, totally!” Jarrydd chimed in answering for him. I let out an annoyed sigh while Adrian positioned himself next to the cooling tray. The auto-flash went off.

“Oh shit, one more. I didn’t mean to use fl-“ I looked up and Adrian’s entire demeanor changed. He leaned over the roaster as if he were in pain, his eyes wide open searching the ground then up at me. It looked like he’d woken up and realized I was there for the first time.

“Get out,” Adrian said, voice cracking. Jarrydd grabbed both his shoulders and tried to push him back into the chair next to the roaster but Adrian was slightly stronger. “GET OUT!” He yelled this time, struggling with Jarrydd and lunging toward me.

I stumbled back as Adrian started to fight Jarrydd and scream. Jarrydd raised his voice this time and told me to leave and I listened. Running out of the cabin, I fumbled for my phone to send the photo to Damien.

“Is everything okay?”

I physically jumped hearing and seeing Molly suddenly appear in front of me. I dropped my phone and cracked the screen. Fuck.

“Uh— yeah. Everything’s cool…” I shook my head and sighed picking up my broken phone. I could make out the message notification from Damien but couldn’t get it open to see it. Molly stepped next to me and linked her arm with mine. She slowly started to walk me forward, back towards the house.

“I’ve been wanting to speak with you since you got here, Justin,” She started. “Let’s go inside and chat…over a coffee, of course”

——

Molly’s back was turned to me as she finished brewing a December Dripper for two. The brew smelled like berries and dark chocolate.

“I just love coffee from Ethiopia, don’t you?” She said turned around, placing a steaming mug on the table next to me. We sat on deep brown Eames chairs directly across from each other. “You know, Africa is the motherland for coffee,” A smile crept across her face as she began speaking. Her eyes did not leave mine and I started to become really uncomfortable. “And here at our camp, we go out of our way to show our appreciation. Diversity in all ways is very important to us.”

Molly bent her head down into her white notNeutral cup and took a loud, long cupping slurp from it. Suddenly, I felt paralyzed. My brain screamed for me to get up and run, but I couldn’t. All I could do was stare wide-eyed back at Molly as she cradled her coffee cup. The tattoos on her arm—long branches of coffee fruit and portraits of Black and brown women picking them—started to move and taunt me. My heart rate skyrocketed. I couldn’t do anything.

Tilting her head to the side, Molly gave me a look of concern that turned sinister. She knelt down in front of me, still holding her cup, and held my right cheek.

“We’re going to help you become one of the greatest coffee professionals ever, Justin. With our help, you can get there.”

Dave, Jarrydd, and Karen stepped into my line and sight and crowded Molly, all staring at me. I noticed a glass bottle of cold brew in Karen’s hand. Molly took another loud slurp from her cup and the space around me disappeared. I sunk back into a dark abyss, the scene of everyone around me fading away quickly. I screamed. I cried. I tried to reach for something but there was nothing.

——

I stirred the bloom and took a large sniff of the bright, citrus aromatics of the coffee sitting in the large vat in front of me. Kenyan coffees really do make the best cold brew, I thought to myself. I stepped off the small ladder and unhooked my apron, revealing my “Coffee Is The New Black” t-shirt.

Adrian wheeled a bucket of freshly roasted coffee into the space. “UGANDA” was written in large letters on the side—no additional information. I maneuvered around the maze of nitro kegs to retrieve the beans from him. We exchanged nods and he retreated back to his roaster’s cabin. My cabin was new. Cases of brown glass bottles with white scripted letters printed on them sat alongside a wall, waiting to be filled with my delicious cold brew. It was outfitted with two white EKK’s, a top-notch RO water system, and a state of the art bottling system.

I became the cold brew guy.

Michelle Johnson (@thechocbarista) is the publisher of The Chocolate Barista, and the marketing director at Barista Hustle. Read more Michelle Johnson on Sprudge.

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India’s Specialty Coffee Journey: From Chicory to The Chemex

You won’t just find chai in India. You’ll also find coffee – and good coffee, too. We’ve come a long way, from Robusta-chicory blends to pour overs of Indian single origins. But we’re just on the cusp of our third wave revolution. Let me introduce you to the Indian specialty coffee industry, from production to consumption.

SEE ALSO: What Is “Third Wave Coffee”, & How Is It Different to Specialty?

Robusta plantation in India

The History of Coffee Consumption in India

Coffee isn’t indigenous to India. The legend goes that the sixteenth-century saint Brother Baba Budan traveled all the way from Yemen, along the corridors of the Middle East, to smuggle into India seven green beans – seven being a sacred number. At this time, the export of fertile green beans from Yemen was strictly prohibited and, if caught, the saint could expect severe consequences.

Brother Baba Budan chose to plant these beans in Chikkamagaluru, a district in Karnataka, southwestern India, which is now India’s largest producer of coffee. Coffee consumption grew popular in southern India, which accounts for 82% of the country’s coffee farmland today. Northern India, however, remained loyal to tea and, in particular, chai.

SEE ALSO: What Are The 6 Different Kinds of Tea?

Washed coffee dries on patios in Chikmagaluru, where legends say that coffee first came to India. Credit: Mithilesh Vazalwar

Over time, chicory root also became a popular addition to Indian coffee. This bitter additive grew popular across Europe as a result of Napoleon’s Continental Blockade in the early 1800s, and from there spread around the world to India, New Orleans, and more. According to the USDA, many popular instant coffee brands in India contain 20–49% chicory.

Today, as a tea-drinking country, coffee consumption is still low. However, it seems to be growing. Data hasn’t been released since 2011, yet figures from the Indian Coffee Board indicate that 2011 consumption levels were almost double that of 2000.

What’s more, in May 2017, the USDA reported that “hundreds of western-influenced coffee shops have emerged across India’s major and smaller ‘second tier’ cities over the past decade.”

Drinking tea at 1,500 m.a.s.l. in the coffee-producing region of Chikmagaluru. Credit: Mithilesh Vazalwar

Seeds of Change: An Emerging Specialty Culture

In fact, a growing number of Indian consumers are looking for coffee that’s sweet, acidic, or complex, rather than bitter. Coffee shops are slowly introducing pour over brewing devices. Brijesh Bachkaniwala, Owner and Barista of the specialty coffee shop Meraki, tells me, “There was a fear, in the beginning, that there will be lack of acceptance, but now it is established that those who will stick to quality will have an upper hand [in contrast to those who focus on commodity coffee].”

And it’s not just coffee shops that are changing.

Sreeraksha, a young fourth-generation coffee producer from Baarbara Estate tells me, “With the growers now coming in front of the consumer directly, both in India and internationally, it has now become more important and rewarding to be quality-conscious and be ready to experiment on micro lots.”

He believes that 90+ Indian coffees will be seen within the next five years. You might think that this is an ambitious target: with coffees that receive cupping scores of 80+ out of 100 being labelled as specialty, 90+ lots are extraordinary. And traditionally Indian coffees are blended, with roasters and consumers perceiving them as bitter.

Yet high-quality Indian coffees are being produced. In Melbourne this year, where I was taking my Q grader exams, I met people who had cupped 85+ Indian coffees. Olam Coffee currently offers a “Top Lot” from India, ranking it with Ethiopian and Colombian beans. Specialty Indian coffees may be rare, but they’re available.

Indian coffees on the cupping table. Credit: Mithilesh Vazalwar

Creating a Thirst for The Third Wave

But what’s driving this blossoming specialty scene?

With producers, it’s no doubt partly thanks to direct feedback from roasters and the promise of better prices. As for consumers, I reached out to industry experts to hear their opinions.

“More expats moving back is one of the influential reasons this sector is seeing a positive change,” Suhas Dwarakanath, CEO of Vimoshka Beverage Solutions, tells me. Young Indians make up a large proportion of international students around the world. They represent the second-largest percentage of international students living in the US and the fourth-largest in the UK (Migration Policy Institute, Higher Education Statistics Agency).

With more and more of these graduates then migrating back to India, having been exposed to third wave coffee overseas, demand for specialty is growing. What’s more, this generation cares about concepts such as “fresh,” “organic,” “ethical,” and “transparent,” whether it’s clothing, food, or coffee.

The thirst for great coffee isn’t just an import from other countries, however: the USDA also attributes it to increased incomes and a growing tendency to eat outside of the home.

And then there’s the coffee competitions and bodies. The country finally has its own AeroPress Championship and, hopefully, other national championships will soon come knocking on India’s door.

Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters coffee shop in Delhi. Credit: Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters

Coffee: A Challenging Career Choice?

As the Indian specialty coffee culture continues to grow, we should see more and more specialty baristas, roasters, and producers. A career in coffee is still unconventional; coffee shop owners are often looked down on. The SCA and CQI are still relatively unknown. Yet the small pocket of people who are curious about coffee, who read SCA resources and research coffee cupping, is growing.

Roasters, Q graders, trainers, and café owners must work to support up-and-coming roasters and coffee shops. It’s important to share information that will help this industry grow. As Dwarakanath says, “The industry now needs to work together as a group, that is all. We have all the required resources.”

Yet unfortunately, there are still difficulties to be faced. Duties and taxes pose a major challenge. We’ve tried to bring in equipment from Europe, but the duties turned out to be so high that we had to cancel the consignment. Similarly, the tax for imported coffees stands at 100%.

Additionally, with most of the coffee being produced in southern India, many young producers are relocating to the large city of Bengaluru (also known as Bangalore) for more job opportunities. But we need to make them aware of the promise of specialty coffee farming so that we can improve our home-grown beans.

We also need to answer the question of whether roasters in producing nations should purchase coffee from other origins: it is a question with ethical implications as well as financial ones.

Roasting Indian coffee in India. Credit: Mithilesh Vazalwar

There’s no doubt that we face challenges ahead as we make coffee production, roasting, and brewing a viable career choice – but we must also remember there is great potential. India’s specialty coffee industry is growing, and it will only get stronger.

Written by Mithilesh Vazalwar, Coffee Consultant for roasteries and cafés, Q-Grader, Roaster, and India’s 1st AeroPress Champion.

Perfect Daily Grind

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Una Guía De las Regiones de Café de Colombia

Pocos lugares son también conocidos por su café como Colombia, la tierra de Juan Valdez. Sin embargo, no todos los granos colombianos son iguales; este es un gran país lleno de paisajes diversos, desde selvas tropicales hasta cimas montañosas, dos costas y todo lo que hay entre estas. Y a medida que el suelo cambia, gran parte del clima, el tiempo de cosecha y más, también lo hacen.

Quería saber más sobre las regiones productoras de Colombia, así que hablé con Juan Carlos García López, agrónomo de Cenicafé, el centro nacional de investigaciones de la Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros. Sigue leyendo para descubrir lo que aprendí.

English Version: A Roaster’s Guide to The Coffee-Producing Regions of Colombia

En una finca cafetera en Planadas, Tolima, Colombia. Crédito: Angie Molina

Café Colombiano: Lo Esencial

Carlos me dijo que hay 914,000 hectáreas en fincas cafeteras en 5 zonas principales y 19 sub-regiones de Colombia. Dentro de estas, los compradores encontrarán principalmente las variedades Caturra, Maragogipe, Tabi, Typica, Bourbon, Castillo y Colombia.

Además, el país se encuentra en una excelente ubicación para la producción de café: se encuentra cerca del ecuador, y sus montañas pueden alcanzar más de 2,000 m.s.n.m.. Las montañas de la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, por ejemplo, son una de las cordilleras costeras más altas del mundo.

Juan Carlos comentó que Colombia también es afortunada de tener la cordillera de los Andes. Las fuentes de agua de aquí fluyen a las cuencas de drenaje del país, incluidas las grandes en los departamentos de Cauca, Magdalena y Nariño. Esto crea un mejor entorno para cultivar café; no es coincidencia que Cauca y Nariño sean regiones cafeteras bien conocidas.

Según la Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros, la Asociación Cafetera de Colombia, el café proporciona 800,000 empleos directos en todo el país, impactando positivamente a 563,000 familias así como a la economía.

Café en camas elevadas en Buena Vista en Gaitania, Tolima Crédito: : Angie Molina

El Perfil de Sabor de un Café de Colombia

Colombia puede parecer, a primera vista, un país más homogéneo que otros. Produce solo Arábica, predomina el proceso de lavado , y una gran cantidad de su café crece en sombra. Sin embargo, con 19 regiones productoras, aún encontrarás diversidad en los perfiles de sabor, climas y temporadas de cosecha.

En general, el Arábica colombiano es conocido por su aroma pronunciado, acidez, cuerpo medio alto y limpieza. Los granos de aquí a menudo se describen como bien equilibrados o suaves.

Los cafés de altura suelen ser los cultivos colombianos más solicitados. Cuando se mantienen bien, la temperatura fría de la montaña permite que las cerezas maduren de forma más lenta, a su vez, esto conduce a bebidas más ácidas, aromáticas y sabrosas (pero también a un rendimiento menor).

Es más, una temperaturas más fría significa que hay un menor riesgo de infestación de plagas. Las plagas pueden reducir el rendimiento y dañar tanto a los árboles como a las cerezas y, como consecuencia, esto puede afectar el sabor de la taza final y la forma en que se transfiere el calor durante el tueste. Muchas cerezas dañadas por plagas en un lote, y el café no se considerará de especialidad.

Por otro lado, Gloria Inés Puerta, maestra en Procesamiento de Café y Control de Café y Científica Investigadora en Cenicafé, dijo que algunas de las mayores diferencias en los perfiles de sabor provienen de las diferentes variedades, métodos de producción y  procesamiento, y estilos de preparación.

Exploremos a fondo las cinco zonas cafeteras de Colombia.

Las flores de café florecen en la misma rama que las cerezas de café , esto es común en Colombia y es un síntoma de cosechas bianuales. Crédito: Angie Molina

La Zona Norte

En el norte de Colombia, encontrarás las subregiones productoras de café de Santander, Norte de Santander, La Guajira, Magdalena y el Cesar. 62.500 productores cultivan café en 129.500 hectáreas de tierra, según Juan Carlos.

Esta región tiene solo una estación seca, de diciembre a marzo, y una temporada húmeda, de abril a noviembre, anualmente. El café florece en marzo, justo cuando se acerca la temporada de lluvias, y se recolecta en octubre / noviembre, cuando termina.

Además, según la Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros, el café 9º  por encima del norte se cultiva en condiciones similares a América Central: latitudes más bajas y temperaturas más altas. Por otro lado, dentro de la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta y las regiones de Santander y Norte de Santander, los cultivos están más expuestos a la radiación solar, como resultado, los productores tienden a usar más sombra. Estas regiones, informa la Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros, producen cafés con menos acidez pero con más cuerpo.

Las altas laderas de la montaña de Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Crédito: Lente Latinoamericano

Zonas Centro Norte  y Centro Sur

En las zonas centro norte y centro sur de Colombia se encuentran las regiones del sur de Antioquia, Boyacá, Caldas, Chocó, Risaralda, Quindío, norte del Valle del Cauca, Cundinamarca y norte del Tolima.

Antioquia es la segunda región productora más grande de Colombia,Tolima es la tercera, lo que convierte a estas dos zonas en una zona grande y conocida. Según Juan Carlos, 263,000 productores cultivan café en 492,000 hectáreas. Sin embargo, la mayoría de estos se encuentran en la región de norte central: la zona central del sur es el hogar de solo 28.500 productores.

Las zonas tienen dos estaciones secas y dos estaciones húmedas cada año: la temporada seca va de diciembre a febrero y de junio a septiembre; la temporada húmeda va de marzo a mayo y de septiembre a noviembre. Esto significa dos temporadas de cosecha.

En la zona del central norte, la temporada de cosecha principal es de octubre a diciembre, al final de la segunda temporada húmeda. Sin embargo, hay una segunda cosecha durante mayo y junio, cuando termina la primera temporada húmeda.

La zona centro sur tiene períodos de cosecha similares: de mayo a junio y de octubre a noviembre. Sin embargo, no tiene una cosecha principal y secundaria. Los dos períodos son igualmente importantes.

Cafés creciendo en sombra en Finca San Luis, Libano, Tolima. Crédito: Angie Molina

VER TAMBIÉN: Colombia Tiene una Nueva Meta: Café sostenible para el 2027

Zona Sur

El sur de Colombia se encuentra más cerca del ecuador, y el café se cultiva a mayor altura. Es una región particularmente asociada con calidad: los cafés son conocidos por su mayor acidez y sus distintivos perfiles de taza.

Además, Nariño, Cauca y Huila conforman lo que Juan Carlos describe como un nuevo triángulo cafetero colombiano. No solo Nariño y Huila son grandes productores, sino que también son regiones cafeteras comunes dentro de la industria de especialidad. De hecho, Huila recibió la Denominación de Origen en 2013. Las notas a fruta y caramelo, la acidez dulce y los intensos aromas característicos de sus cafés llevaron a este reconocimiento oficial.

Dentro de la Zona Sur, 211,000 productores cultivan café en 282,000 hectáreas de tierra. Esto hace que el tamaño promedio de la finca sea mucho más pequeño que en otras áreas del país.

Al igual que en la zona norte, solo hay una estación húmeda y otra seca. Juan Carlos dijo que la estación seca dura de junio a septiembre, seguida por la aparición de flores de café. La temporada de lluvias cae en octubre y puede durar hasta mayo, pero la temporada de cosecha generalmente comienza en abril y continúa hasta junio.

Esto contrasta con el norte del país, donde el café se cosecha en otoño. La cosecha también se extiende hasta diciembre en el centro de Colombia, los tostadores pueden ofrecerles a sus clientes cafés colombianos la mayor parte del año.

Cerezas de café en una Finca en Nariño. Crédito: Jon Allen for Onyx Coffee Lab

Zona Oriental

Nuestra última zona productora de café en Colombia es mucho más pequeña. Incluye solo las regiones de Arauca, Casanare, Meta y Caquetá. 5.500 productores cultivan café en 10.500 hectáreas de tierra.

La región sufrió conflictos en el pasado, y la producción de café aquí es ahora de alta prioridad en términos de apoyo. Juan Carlos comentó que la Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros está invirtiendo para ayudar a la región a cultivar variedades más adecuadas para su territorio, también se enfocan en ayudar a los agricultores para que  aumenten el tamaño de sus fincas.

Explicó que, que en términos de clima, el oriente del país es similar al norte, sin embargo, también hay más lluvia y humedad.

Las cordilleras colombianas se extienden en la distancia. Crédito: Angie Molina

La inmensa industria cafetera de Colombia ofrece una variedad de cafés distintivos y recién cosechados durante todo el año. Un café de Nariño de gran acidez no es lo mismo que un café de Santander con cuerpo; el tamaño de las fincas en Caquetá no es el mismo que en el Huila; la temporada de cosecha no es la misma en Cauca que en Magdalena.

Pero no importa dónde se cultive, el café colombiano siempre estará en demanda. Y al comprender las diferencias entre las regiones productoras de café, puedes tener seguro de obtener siempre el mejor café colombiano para tus necesidades.

Escrito por Angie Molina

Ten en cuenta: este artículo fue patrocinado por  Federación Colombiana de Cafeteros.

Traducido por Alejandra M Hernández

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Milwaukee: The Pendulum Coffee Festival Is This Saturday

Mill-e-wah-que, the good land, home of the Brewers and Laverne & Shirley. And this weekend, it will be host of the Pendulum Coffee Festival. Back for a fifth year, the Pendulum Coffee Festival brings together some of the best coffee roasters in the Southeastern Wisconsin area, all under one roof.

Taking place on this Saturday between 10:00am and 5:00pm at Evolution Milwaukee, this year’s festival will have nearly 20 coffee companies taking part, including roasters like Anodyne Coffee, Pilcrow, and Kickapoo Coffee, all of whom will be there doling out samples of their brews and talking all things coffee, giving attendees “unequaled access to their favorite local roasters to discuss all things coffee, from farm to cup.”

Also included in the festivities will be a variety of talks and brewing classes for attendees who are looking to step up their own coffee game at home.

Last year’s event had over 700 people show up, and Pendulum Coffee expects that number to double this year. Tickets for the event are available for $10 in advance and $15 the day of. For a full list of roasters, classes and talks, or to purchase tickets, visit Pendulum Coffee’s official website.

Zac Cadwalader is the news editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.

*top image via Pendulum Coffee

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A Celebration Of Specialty At The Tokyo Coffee Festival

When we last visited the Tokyo Coffee Festival in 2016, organizer Yuji Otsuki said it was a chance to introduce people to the local scene and show them the ease of brewing at home. Since then, the festival has established itself as a chance to explore new coffee, learn more about it, listen to live music, and try other specialty food and drink.

And with the most recent event just finished, I thought it would be interesting to look at the ways the festival has grown and what new developments have taken place since we first covered the festival—it’s a look at what was, what is, and what to look forward to in the future!

Espresso

The most recent Tokyo Coffee Festival was also its espresso debut, with duties rotating on two-hour shifts to offer visitors a variety of coffee to try from coffee shops including Rec Coffee, Fuglen Coffee Roasters, and And Coffee Roasters. 

From far flung islands

Though the event is always a showcase for Tokyo coffee roasters like Single O Japan, Light Up Coffee, 4/4 Seasons Coffee, and Glitch Coffee Roasters, it’s also blossomed into an event that introduces a variety of coffee shops from outside of Tokyo, too. Highlights this year included Cerrado Coffee—all the way from Okinawa with a sweet Ethiopia Gedeb—and Coral Coffee, who came from the coasts of the Goto Islands of Nagasaki!

From afar, but not too far

From outside of Tokyo, the Tokyo Coffee Festival hosted Takamura Wine & Coffee Roasters from Osaka, Hoshikawa Cafe from Saitama, Trunk Coffee from Nagoya, and Hibi Coffee from Kyoto, who brought a little of the tea ceremony to their kimono-clad barista working on pour-over coffee!

From neighboring Asia

When we first talked in 2016, Otsuki had mentioned with some surprise that a Taiwanese coffee shop had wanted to take part in the festival. This year, the lineup of Asian coffee shops outside of Japan included Papa Palheta from Singapore, St.1 Cafe and Aroma Cafe Live from Taiwan, and Blooom Coffee House from Macau.

The overseas selection

It isn’t just the Asian coffee roasters with an interest in the festival, however, and the September Tokyo Coffee Festival included the likes of The Barn from Germany, Artificer from Sydney, Aloha Coffee Lab from Hawaii, and New Zealand’s Coffee Supreme, who not only sold a selection of cute red and white socks, but have also just recently opened their first Tokyo coffee shop.

A celebration of specialty

Though coffee is at the heart of the Tokyo Coffee Festival, it’s also an opportunity to introduce people to other specialty food and drink that shares in the craftsmanship and pursuance of natural flavors inherent in specialty coffee, and products made in the same vein or related to coffee in some way. Craft beer is often on display, but this year also saw specialty chocolate-covered bananas courtesy of Minimal, and Prana Chai with their specialty tea.

Educating and Entertaining

More recently, the Tokyo Coffee Festival has hosted talk events featuring competition champions like Japan Barista Champion Miki Suzuki, and World Brewers’ Cup Champion Tetsu Kasuya. This year the event hosted the JAC finals, as well as a talk on the Taiwanese coffee scene courtesy of Goodmans Coffee representative, Atsuomi Ito.

To keep up with the Tokyo Coffee Festival, check their website or official Facebook page.

Hengtee Lim (@Hent03) is a Sprudge.com staff writer based in Tokyo. Read more Hengtee Lim on Sprudge.

Photos courtesy of Kazu Poon.

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Manejando el Acoso y Agresión Sexual en las Tiendas de Café

A medida que nuestras redes sociales se llenan de mujeres diciendo “Me too”, a medida que  varias celebridades son acusadas de acoso y abuso sexual, y a medida que la industria de la tecnología es forzada a reconocer la prevalencia de la discriminación de sexo y acoso dentro de este, es hora de que admitamos algo: el acoso y abuso sexual son comunes y suceden en todas partes.

Y en todas partes incluye las tiendas de café.

Como propietarios de tiendas de cafés, como baristas y amantes del café, debemos asumir la responsabilidad de esto: para dejar de escuchar a las mujeres que dicen “yo también” y comenzar a decir “nosotros también”. Nosotros también vivimos en una cultura donde el acoso y el abuso sexual son problemas, y nosotros también tenemos la responsabilidad de prevenirlos.

Porque cuando somos pasivos sobre el acoso sexual, logramos que continúe. Así que, si deseas tomar acción en contra de este, sigue leyendo nuestra guía de tienda de café para reconocerlo, tomar medidas preventivas y responder cuando se reporte.

English Version: Dealing With Sexual Harassment & Assault in Coffee Shops

Crédito:  Mikaela Sinclaire

Qué es el Acoso y Abuso Sexual

¿Cuentan los comentarios? ¿Qué hay de las bromas? ¿Qué pasa si la víctima no le dice al acosador que se detenga?

La respuesta rápida a estas preguntas es sí.

Para una respuesta más larga, vale la pena remitirse a la guía de la ONU Mujer  sobre  acoso sexual en el sitio de trabajo y leer la página cuatro. (Para una perspectiva más centrada en los EE. UU., también puedes leer la guía más corta en el sitio web de US Equal Opportunity Employment Commission)

Hay dos puntos de esta guía que merecen ser destacados:

1.El acoso sexual no siempre es visible

ONU Mujeres explica que puede ser tan sutil como “dar vueltas alrededor de una persona”, “mirar fijamente a alguien” y “mirar a una persona de arriba a abajo (ojos de elevador)”. Puede incluir comentarios, llamando a adultos “chica, pedazo, muñeca, bebé o miel”, dando regalos, tocando a alguien, o incluso difundiendo rumores sobre la vida sexual de una persona.

2. “No deseado” es un concepto clave

Como lo escrito por ONU Mujeres

“Comportamiento No Deseado es la palabra crucial. No Deseado no quiere decir <involuntario>. Una víctima puede acceder o estar de acuerdo con ciertas conductas y participar activamente en esto aunque sea ofensivo e inaceptable. Por lo tanto, una conducta sexual es no deseada cuando una persona sometida a esta la considera no deseada”.

En otras palabras, no importa si alguien sonríe educadamente mientras es acosado o abusado, o si no se queja: sigue siendo incorrecto. Hay muchas razones por las que alguien no dirá nada a la persona que lo está haciendo o al gerente de la tienda de café, por miedo a perder su trabajo o por la reacción de los demás.

Crédito: Ashley Lukashevsky

Acoso y Abuso Sexual en Tiendas de café

Los baristas pueden experimentar acoso y abuso sexual por parte de sus compañeros de trabajo, gerentes, propietarios y clientes. Los clientes también pueden experimentarlo, tanto de otros clientes como de baristas.

El elemento de servicio al cliente de trabajar en una tienda de café puede hacer que los baristas sientan que tienen que aceptar el acoso de los clientes. Si esos clientes dan una buena propina, los baristas también pueden sentirse reacios ya sea para informar o pedirle al cliente que se detenga.

Además, en 2016, Trades Union Congress (TUC)  del Reino Unido y Everyday Sexism Project descubrieron que los miembros más jóvenes del personal, las personas en puestos subalternos y las personas con contratos ocasionales eran más propensos a sufrir acoso sexual. Con muchos jóvenes baristas trabajando solo un par de turnos por semana, pueden ser más vulnerables.

Y dado que muchas tiendas de café son pequeñas, los baristas también pueden sentirse impedidos de informar sus experiencias, especialmente si su gerente es amigable con el acosador o atacante.

Por otro lado, los clientes pueden verse acosados o abusados mientras ordenan su café, y, a pesar de encontrarse en un espacio público, pueden creer que es poco probable que otros los ayuden. La apatía de los testigos, la tendencia de las personas a no ayudar a los demás cuando están en grupos, puede ser un gran problema cuando se trata de acoso y abuso sexual.

Si bien gran parte de la discusión sobre este tema se centra en las mujeres, los hombres y los baristas y clientes no binarios (genderqueer) también pueden experimentarlo. De hecho, según RAINN, los estudiantes trans, genderqueer y no conformes experimentan tasas más altas de abuso sexual en los EE. UU. ; es probable que esto sea representativo de la población general. Las personas de diferentes etnias también experimentan diferentes niveles de abuso sexual, al igual que las personas con diferentes discapacidades.

Dado que muchos de los grupos que tienen más probabilidades de verse afectados por el acoso y abuso sexual también son más propensos a enfrentar la discriminación de otras maneras, esto puede hacer difícil que lo denuncien.

Crédito: Rebecca González

Cómo Enfrentar el Acoso y Abuso Sexual

No podemos enfrentar esto si solo tomamos medidas después de que ya haya sucedido. La acción preventiva es clave; también lo es responder adecuadamente cuando se informa. Seguir estos seis pasos puede ayudar:

1.Crear Políticas

Al definir qué significa acoso y abuso sexual, dejar que los empleados sepan que no es aceptable y crear sistemas disciplinarios, puede reducir el número de acosos y abusos sexuales que ocurren a manos de tu personal. Además, los empleados que experimenten esto pueden que estén más dispuestos a denunciarlo si saben que el caso será tomado en serio.

Cuando tienes políticas es más fácil para ti asegurarte de que estás tomando las medidas adecuadas de manera oportuna. Esto te ayuda a apoyar a tu personal y cumplir con la ley.

Al crear políticas, debes verificar la ley en tu área. Es posible que debas seguir ciertos protocolos. También puedes contactar organizaciones locales y nacionales para obtener consejos específicos.

2. Proporciona Capacitación y Haz visible las políticas

Las políticas solo son efectivas cuando son conocidas y aplicadas. La mejor forma de comunicarlas al personal es a través de capacitaciones y documentos. Los carteles en la sala de descanso pueden ser parte de una estrategia efectiva, pero también pueden parecer un insulto si no van acompañados de otras acciones.

La capacitación puede explorar cualquier cosa desde:

• ¿Qué es el acoso y el abuso sexual?
• ¿Quién experimenta acoso y abuso sexual?
• Qué hacer cuando ves acoso y abuso sexual
• Cómo responder al acoso sexual de los clientes
• Cómo apoyar a los clientes que sufren acoso y abuso sexual

Si no estás seguro acerca de cómo crear programas de capacitación efectivos, puedes comunicarte con organismos locales y nacionales para obtener recursos y recomendaciones. También puedes pedir comentarios de tu personal, y recomiendo tener un sistema mediante el cual puedan enviar ideas y problemas de forma anónima.

Crédito: Juliana Posada

3. Construir un Cultura de “Hablar sin Pena”

Cuando las personas son testigos de acoso o abuso sexual pero no se expresan en contra, esto envía el mensaje de que el comportamiento está bien. Las personas que lo experimentan tienen menos probabilidades de denunciarlo porque sienten que no se tomará en serio; las personas que lo comenten tienen más probabilidades de que continúen haciéndolo porque sienten que es normal o incluso aplaudido.

Puede ser difícil hablar en contra del acoso sexual, especialmente si proviene de un gerente, pero hay formas en las que puedes alentar al personal a hacerlo.

En primer lugar, puedes liderar con el ejemplo. En segundo lugar, puedes dejar que tu personal conozca tus expectativas y que no se meterán en problemas por hablar. Y finalmente, puedes hablar sobre qué hacer si ves acoso o abuso (de cualquier tipo) en diferentes situaciones. Esto ha demostrado eficacia en la  disminución de la apatía de los testigos y puede integrarse en tus programas de capacitación.

Crédito: Marylou Faur

4. Crear Sistemas para Informarlo

Generalmente, el acoso y abuso sexual no se denuncian, especialmente cuando ocurre en el trabajo. En 2016, el TUC y Everyday Sexism Project descubrieron que el 80% de las mujeres que lo habían experimentado en el lugar de trabajo no lo denunciaron, y en casi el 80% de los casos, el perpetrador estaba en una posición de autoridad sobre ellas.

Esto significa que es fundamental contar con un sistema para informarlo, y uno que la gente se sienta capaz de usar. Tu personal necesita informar incidentes sin llamar la atención sobre ellos mismos y también debe haber varias personas a las que puedan informar los eventos (de lo contrario, ¿qué sucede si la persona designada es el acosador?). Finalmente, este sistema necesita ser ampliamente conocido.

5. Responde apropiadamente a los Reportes

Cuando alguien informa sobre un acoso o abuso sexual, es importante mostrarles que lo estás tomando en serio.

Antes que nada, escucha atentamente y toma notas. Pide aclaraciones si las necesitas e, idealmente, una lista escrita de incidentes y fechas. No disminuyas el impacto de cosas que te parezcan pequeñeces, como las miradas, los comentarios o esperar a alguien después del trabajo. Todo esto cae bajo el paraguas del acoso sexual y todos pueden dejar a tu personal sintiéndose incómodo.

Al usar las políticas que ya has elaborado, discute qué medidas tomarás con la persona que las reporta. Esto puede ir desde hablar con el acosador hasta enfrentar las acusaciones de agresión e inmediatamente cancelar los turnos del acusado hasta que se complete una investigación policial (en este caso, debe consultar las leyes locales y los contratos laborales para conocer sus obligaciones legales).

Crédito: Jessica Ornelas

6.Reforzar

No es suficiente dar la capacitación una sola vez y luego olvidarte de ella. Para crear una cultura en la que no se acepte el acoso y el abuso sexual, debes reforzar estos mensajes.

Como la mayoría de las tiendas de café son pequeñas, frecuentemente puedes hacerlo a través de conversaciones cotidianas: la forma en que hablas de los acontecimientos de las noticias, recordando a los baristas que no tienen que aceptar el acoso de los clientes y verificando a las personas si se ven incomodas en cualquier situación. También puedes ofrecer capacitación de seguimiento.

En las cadenas más grandes de tiendas de café, puedes capacitar a tus gerentes sobre cómo reforzar la capacitación. También puedes enviar correos electrónicos por toda la empresa y realizar encuestas anónimas para conocer cómo se sienten tus baristas.

Crédito: Lauren Mitchell

El acoso y abuso sexual nunca deberían aceptarse, y todas las empresas tienen la responsabilidad de que su personal y sus clientes trabajen para evitarlo. Aunque estos pasos pueden no ser fáciles, ayudarán a garantizar la seguridad de las personas en tu tienda de café, quienes merecen poder hacer su trabajo o comprar un café sin ser acosadas o atacadas.

Escrito por Tanya Newton.

Traducido por Alejandra M Hernández

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