Little Bear Green Coffee Buying Philosophy

Here at Little Bear we care A LOT about the coffees we source and serve; after all, we are a coffee company. But what exactly goes into sourcing coffee, and why do we put so much effort into it? In today’s blog post we’re going to break down exactly what green coffee is, why we put so much care into sourcing it, and how that affects you as one of our guests.

What is green coffee?

The short answer is that green coffee is the raw unroasted seed inside of a coffee cherry, but it’s so much more than that; it’s the backbone of our business. Without green coffee we wouldn’t have roasted coffee! 

Photo of Green Coffee being Processed at origin

How do you source green coffee?

There are two main ways to source green coffee: through an importer and direct trade. Sourcing coffee through an importer is the most common way to source green coffee. To do so, you reach out to a green coffee importer; there are many, and you ask to see their offerings list. There are typically two lists they can show you, SPOT or Futures. SPOT coffees are coffees that have already landed in the US and are typically being stored at a green coffee warehouse. Futures are coffees that haven’t landed in the US just yet and are either getting ready to be shipped, have already been shipped and are on a shipping container headed to the US, or are contracted with an importer but haven’t made it to either of those steps just yet. Direct trade, on the other hand, has roasters reaching out directly to coffee producers and getting samples and discussions. This means focusing not just on the end product but also investing our time in price and fostering those relationships. Typically roasters will still go through an importer to bring coffee into the US, but there are other options, such as air freighting coffee, having it shipped through UPS, or importing it themselves. There is no right or wrong way to source coffee, and here at Little Bear we do a mix of both direct trade and working with importers.

Little Bears sourcing ethos:

Over the past several years, we've dedicated ourselves to the pursuit of excellence within our craft. To us this means focusing not just on the end product but also investing our time into turning our producer partnerships into long-term friendships. As an industry, we often forget that everyone within the supply chain is sitting on the same side of the metaphorical table. In our own ways, we're all working to create value for our end consumer in order to raise the bar and push the industry forward. A great example of this is our continued partnerships in both India and Colombia.

Our goal is to dig deeper and not wider. To us this means working towards intentionally growing the partnerships we already have, rather than constantly chasing “the next-best-thing.” To us this is how we create a more stable supply chain, not just for our producing partners but also for our customers.

How we deliver on this ethos: 

For us, green coffee buying is about fostering relationships that can turn into long-term friendships. In the last section we touched on our ongoing partnerships in India and Colombia, and here we’ll deep dive a little more into that. 

Colombia: 

Here at Little Bear we’ve been very lucky to work with some truly amazing producers, exporters, and importers, and Colombia is no expectation. We work very closely with Equation, a Colombian exporting and importing company, that emphasizes not just quality but also helping form long-term partnerships with the producers we work with. At Equation, coffee is much more than just a beverage. For them, it's a way to connect people and has helped remind us that community is so much more than the city or country you’re in. Some partnerships we’ve been able to foster through Equation include our ongoing partnerships with Jhony Melo Ortega, Sara Gutirrez, and Diego Horta. All three of these producers are core members of how we source Colombian coffees and are close friends of Little Bears.

Photo of Jhony Melo, Luis from Equation and Jhony's father

India:

Here at Little Bear we’ve been lucky to work with some amazing producers in India. These producers are leading their craft and pushing the limits of coffee production. We’re sure you’ve seen their names on several of our bags, Pranoy Thipaiah and Ashok Patre. Both Pranoy and Ashok are known for their cutting-edge coffee processing techniques as well as their regenerative agricultural practices they use on their respective farms. We’re incredibly lucky to have not just an ongoing partnership with them but also hopefully a lifelong friendship.

Photo of Pranoy and his father Ajoy 

These are just a few examples of how we put our sourcing ethos into practice. At the end of the day we want to try and be the best partner we can be to our producing partners, and to us that means trying to foster a genuine friendship between us and them. To us, friends have each other's backs and want what's best for each other, which is why implementing that mindset into our business practices feels super important. 

In conclusion:

Coffee is a unique industry where the sky’s the limit and relationships are at the core of everything that we do. In today's blog post we briefly discussed an entire sector of the supply chain and we hope you left a little more knowledgeable than you were before you read it. Thank you for reading and be sure to check out some of our cool India and Colombia offerings.