{"id":1534,"date":"2020-08-27T16:41:58","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T16:41:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oliverberry.com\/?p=1534"},"modified":"2023-11-27T08:21:10","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T08:21:10","slug":"a-cup-of-java-coffee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oliverberry.com\/writing\/a-cup-of-java-coffee\/","title":{"rendered":"A Cup of Java Coffee"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This story about Java coffee was originally published in Waitrose Magazine<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

IN THE FORESTED HILLS above Java’s Ijen Plateau, the farmers of Kayumas are setting out for work. Mopeds splutter along the dusty forest tracks, carrying workers to the village plantations, where they\u2019ll spend the day tending their crops of corn, cloves, ginger and tobacco. Mist is still snaking through the trees, but it\u2019ll burn off before long, and the morning cool will be replaced by the muggy heat of another tropical day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Rijal has been up since sunrise. He prefers to work early, before the heat of the day becomes too fierce, but there\u2019s a more important reason he\u2019s up at the crack of daw. Morning is the best time of day to tend his prize crop: coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018You must take care of your coffee trees, like you would your children,\u2019 he explains, checking each bush as he inches down the terraced hillside. \u2018When we are harvesting, it is best to work early in the day, when it is cool and there is moisture in the air. We want to pick the cherries at exactly the right time to ensure freshness.\u2019 With a snip of his secateurs, he clips off a stray branch from one of the trees, ensuring it retains its compact, bushy shape: regular pruning removes unproductive branches and allows sunlight and air to reach the rest of the plant, he explains. He\u2019ll spend the next few hours tending his trees, harvesting the cherries and pruning by hand, painstakingly checking each one for signs of pests or disease. For Mr Rijal and the other farmers of Kayumas, coffee is both a livelihood, and a labour of love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The history of coffee-growing in Indonesia stretches back more than three hundred years. In the late 16th<\/sup> century, Dutch traders realised the suitability of the Indonesian climate for coffee cultivation, thanks to its combination of volcanic soil, tropical heat, altitude and humidity. The Dutch East India Company established the first plantations around Batavia (then the island\u2019s capital) in the late 17th<\/sup> century. By the 1800s, the island had becoming the world\u2019s principal coffee exporter, supplying coffee houses, cafes and salons all over Europe. In fact, Java coffee became so ubiquitous, the island\u2019s name has become synonymous with its most famous export.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Java\u2019s finest coffee is grown on the rich slopes around the Ijen Plateau, a sprawling, geologically active region in the district of Situbondo, overlooked by the active volcanoes of Ijen, Merapi and Raung. Most coffee is grown at altitudes between 1200 and 1700m, where cooler temperatures and more regular rainfall ensure better harvests and fewer pests. Traditionally, coffee trees in Ijen are planted on terraced hillsides, an ancient cultivation system which both retains water and makes harvesting easier, with shade provided naturally by the dense, tangled canopy of tropical forest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In total, there are 3056 hectares of Java coffee plantations around Situbondo, with another 12,798 hectares in neighbouring Bondowoso. Most of the land is given over to growing robusta, a lower-grade bean that\u2019s usually used for instant and blended coffee. Unusually, Kayumas largely focuses on growing arabica coffee, the premium-quality bean most coveted by western markets. The co-operative\u2019s coffee is grown along organic principles and approved by the Rainforest Alliance, a testament to the farmers\u2019 commitment to environmental stewardship; all the beans are sun-dried, giving the coffee a bright, citrus flavour, balanced by deep, chocolatey undertones. But apart from its distinctive flavour profile, there\u2019s another reason that Mr Rijal and Kayumas\u2019 other farmers can be especially proud of their Java coffee crop. As of May 2018 , it\u2019s not just the only co-operative in Situbondo that\u2019s certified Fairtrade \u2013 it\u2019s the only one in all of Java.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018It\u2019s incredibly exciting for us,\u2019 explains Polly Astbury, Waitrose\u2019s Head Buyer for Coffee, Tea and Hot Beverages, who has made a pilgrimage to Kayumas to meet the growers who will be supplying their Fairtrade coffee to Waitrose\u2019s shelves. \u2018For years, we\u2019ve had an ambition to make all our own-brand No. 1 coffees Fairtrade. Java was the last one we had to tick off our list. It\u2019s taken a long time and a lot of hard work, but with the help of Fairtrade and the amazing farmers here at Kayumas, we\u2019ve finally managed it. To be able to say that we\u2019re the first UK supermarket selling Fairtrade-certified Java coffee makes me really proud.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s taken nearly three years of work for the farmers of Kayumas to achieve their certification. The status brings many benefits \u2013 access to educational and training programmes, improved working conditions, assistance with environmental sustainability – but the most important is the Fairtrade Premium, which guarantees a fixed sum on top of the coffee market price, paid directly into a communal fund that can be used to finance community projects identified by the villagers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018With our first payment, we built a new access road up to the village,\u2019 explains Mrs Siti, her head wrapped in a brightly coloured hijab. As the co-op\u2019s chairwoman, she has overseen and championed its transition to Fairtrade status; although her five-year term is coming to an end soon, she hopes to be re-elected next year. \u2018The old road was often washed away during the monsoon, but now we can export our coffee whatever the weather brings. Next, we are planning to buy a hulling machine[1]<\/a>, so we can do more of the processing ourselves. Fairtrade has made a huge difference to the lives of everyone in Kayumas. I hope the next five years will be even more prosperous, God willing.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kayumas co-op\u2019s Fairtrade status represents another major step forward in the development towards a sustainable coffee industry in Indonesia. At present, the country has 24 Fairtrade coffee co-ops, mainly located on the island of Sumatra, but Fairtrade still only represents a fraction of the country\u2019s coffee harvest: currently, 8752<\/a> metric tonnes of green bean coffee in Indonesia is sold as Fairtrade, from a total of 612,000<\/a>, around 1.4%. As such, it\u2019s hoped that Kayumas\u2019 certification will encourage other co-ops across Java to follow suit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Fairtrade is such an important initiative for the coffee industry in Indonesia,\u2019 explains Hagung Hendrawan, Fairtrade\u2019s Indonesian Coffee Manager, who has accompanied Polly on her trip. \u2018Having a guaranteed price for their coffee means farmers can focus on other issues like sustainability, environmental standards and social welfare. It makes a real difference to peoples\u2019 lives. That\u2019s why it\u2019s so important that UK consumers continue helping us to support projects like this.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While this year\u2019s harvest isn\u2019t over quite yet, today is a special day, and everyone seems happy to put down their tools and enjoy the celebrations. Back in the main square, Mrs Siti and the villagers have prepared a feast in honour of their guests\u2019 visit, along with a coffee-themed dance that\u2019s been choreographed specially for the occasion. Four village girls whirl around in unison, miming the act of cherry-picking and bean-sorting, accompanied by a soundtrack of booming Javanese pop. After a round of applause, everyone settles down for lunch – followed, of course, by a brew of the season\u2019s new beans: rich, robust and black as night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018I hope you enjoy our coffee,\u2019 says Mrs Siti, beaming from ear to ear. \u2018We have grown it with all our love.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 FACTS ABOUT JAVA COFFEE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n