Brazilian News Archive
Great Brazilian Coffee Direct
This year we started a new feature on our journal and through social media where once a month we highlight one of our single origin sources. This month it’s our Brazilian Gerezim.
We thought it would be a great opportunity to share some of the original newsletters that we sent out in the past that chart our journey with the Caixeta family.
This journal blog post features issues four, five and six of the Daily Espresso that were published between 2010 and 2011. Enjoy.
Table of Contents
June 2010
Back 3 weeks now and ready to share some great news. Ethical Addictions will now be working DIRECT with farmers in Brazil to deliver the great Brazilian roast coffee we are known for, direct from the farm, making a real difference to the workers and their families.
We at Ethical Addictions set out 4 years ago to supply the best coffees whilst making a genuine difference to the farmers and the coffee growing regions. During this period, as we have sourced award winning coffees, we have made relationships with farms and villages in Africa.
As we’ve grown it now makes sense to expand our dream and values to work with other farms. Our Brazilian Rainforest coffee comes from a family farm in the Minas Gerais region, near Sao Paulo.
The founding of Gerezim Fazenda
It’s history is best heard through the words of Athos Caixeta:
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“After four generations the tradition in the coffee growing keeps very strong and alive in the life of the family Franco Caixeta and for sure it will be continued for much more because the coffee business it is some that is in our genes.
Everything started more than 140 years ago, when Isaltino (my great-grandfather) moved from Paraná state, to south of Minas Gerais, region today well-known for producing the best coffees of the country. He established his home at the city of Machado, where he began to plant the first seeds of coffee. At that time, it was need to do all work manually, a very hard work that lasted several years.
But after all that hard work, he realised that he was at right place to grow coffee. The soil and the climate in that area have shown great for this culture, besides altitude higher than 1000m, a good base for producing high quality coffees.
Today, my father, Isaltino Franco Caixeta, is the responsible for the Gerezim Farm and Vira Mão Farm, two farms inherited that keep the same tradition of producing good coffees respecting the environment and helping the collaborators of the farm get a better life.”
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A direct relationship at a fair and sustainable price is a dream and a prayer of Athos and his family for many years.
Join EA on on a journey to enjoy great coffee sourced fairly, sustainably, and direct.
December 2010
Ethical Addictions is 4 years old now and I’m in reflective mood as we approach the end of 2010. Sometimes the day-to-day doesn’t reflect the passion and story we’re trying to live out.
Here is a well known story I want to share from Loren Esiley’s The Star Thrower.
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Once upon a time, there was a wise man who had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young boy, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The boy was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?” The boy looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.” “I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the startled wise man. What’s the Story? To this, the boy replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”
At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “I made a difference to that one!”
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At EA this story epitomises what we’re trying to do – make a difference one small step at a time. Our journey so far includes so many difference-making stories: from the small villages of Kilimanjaro, to the family-run Gerezim Farm of Brazil whose first shipment has now arrived in the UK.
We’ve seen lives changed by paying premium prices, investing in the infrastructure of the farms, supporting social projects in the villages, as well as charity work with orphans in Uganda.
And through all of this we’ve had the joy of drinking great Brazilian roast coffee and sharing it with you.
None of this would have been possible without our customers – business and at-home alike, we’re thankful for you and for your partnership in making a difference Thank You
Our commitment to the farms is unwavering and we looking forward to the next chapters of these stories. Join EA on a journey to enjoy great coffee sourced fairly, sustainably, and direct.
October 2011
This was the title of the email we received last month from Athos, at the Gerezim Farm in Brazil. Simple translation – the export of eco/organic coffee to England.
We’re thrilled to be continuing with our direct trade relationship with Athos and his family in Minas Gerais and can announce the imminent arrival of this years Brazilian coffee crop – ready for roasting in early 2012. The upward movement in coffee prices again this year has once again been reflected in the price we have agreed and can confirm they are pleased not only with the premium price they are receiving but the committed relationship in which we are conducting business with them.
It’s a tough time for businesses and individuals alike and we’re aware we trade in high quality and high ethics therefore not being the cheapest – but we never intended to be – Ethical Addictions has always been about the best coffee, and the best way to trade.
None of this would have been possible without our customers understanding and appreciating that and believing in the excellent value we supply.
We’re thankful for you and for your partnership in making a difference.
Thank You
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