The Bangalore Palace is a favoured haunt for foreign and local tourists alike, drawn by the mystique of the Tudor-style building and its history. But since September 25 the place has been swarmed by coffee lovers, growers, business delegates and top executives of world-famous brands, to name a few to attend the World Coffee Conference. The conference concludes on Thursday.
The palace itself, which usually dominates the landscape, has been all but blotted out by the large temporary structures housing the various exhibits. This is the first time an Asian nation has hosted the event, with the International Coffee Organisation and India’s Coffee Board coming together to organise it under the theme of ‘Sustainability through Regenerative Agriculture and Circular Economy’.
Major global players such as Nestle and Starbucks have also made their presence felt, while foreign brands coffee and equipment brands from countries such as Vietnam are also promoting their take on coffee. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
The first new structure the visitors will see is the Western Ghat Coffee Museum, a dome set up with increased humidity and potted plants mimicking the climate of the Western Ghats. On showcase here is the entire life cycle of the coffee plant, starting from sprouting beans to 10-year-old plants, all on display in the dome in pots – complete with a small fountain with black coffee instead of water.
While the World Coffee Conference winds up on Thursday, the 136th International Coffee Council is set for Friday, while delegates are set to visit the coffee plantations of Karnataka over the weekend. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
Further in are the stalls in the exhibition section – with companies, coffee growers, and every other part of the coffee supply chain advertising their products and promoting coffee to thousands of visitors – and delegates from eighty nations.
On prominent display here is the host state, with coffee from every part of the state on display – from Hassan to Chikmagalur to Coorg. (Notably, Karnataka is home to three GI-Certified varieties of coffee – Coorg arabica, Chikmagalur arabica, and Babubudangiri arabica). Others, such as Yercaud’s Tipperary estate, have been producing coffee since the British-era.
This is the first time an Asian nation has hosted the event, with the International Coffee Organisation and India’s Coffee Board coming together to organise it under the theme of ‘Sustainability through Regenerative Agriculture and Circular Economy’. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
Major global players such as Nestle and Starbucks have also made their presence felt, while foreign brands coffee and equipment brands from countries such as Vietnam are also promoting their take on coffee.
Northeastern states have also carved out a niche for themselves at the conference. Several companies from Nagaland, for instance, are promoting their coffee with the help of the local Coffee Development Board.
According to a delegate from YES Coffee, “What makes the state’s coffee unique is the climatic conditions and altitude at which it is grown. We grow pure arabica without pesticides, and it is sold locally and at the national level, with some exports as well.”
Northeastern states have also carved out a niche for themselves at the conference. Several companies from Nagaland, for instance, are promoting their coffee with the help of the local Coffee Development Board. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
Another place where coffee and intercropping is taking off is at the intersection of Sikkim and West Bengal.
According to Sherap Dorjee Bhutia, secretary of the West Bengal-based Kalimpong Coffee Farmers Association, the farmers of Kalimpong grow coffee at an altitude of about 1,750 metres.
“So, mostly only arabica coffee can be grown at this height. We grow intercrops of lemon and avocado along with the coffee. This is happening along with the Self Help Group – this helps women who are not sure what to do with their land,” Bhutia said.
An even larger variety is on display at the nearby workshop section, where growers and roasters speak to coffee enthusiasts not far from the ongoing contests, which include the National Barista and Latte Art contests, to name a few. One stall which has proven popular is run by delegates from several African nations who have long had a reputation as coffee growers, under the aegis of UN’s International Trade Centre (ITC) and ACRAM (Agence des Cotes Robusta d’Afrique et de Madagascar).
An even larger variety is on display at the nearby workshop section, where growers and roasters speak to coffee enthusiasts not far from the ongoing contests, which include the National Barista and Latte Art contests, to name a few. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
ITC programme manager Sadiq Syed said, “We’re here to promote African coffee and learn from Indian experience. We are representing the Ivory Coast, Gabon, Togo, Guinea, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia and Ethiopia. We’re promoting arabica, robusta and liberica coffee from Liberia……this Friday we did a workshop in Bangalore on value addition for green coffee beans. The idea is basically to get visibility and meet buyers and planters. We have planters, processors, and baristas with us….basically all parts of the coffee production chain.”
While most casual consumers might not have heard of beans such as Liberica, they are on the minds of delegates at the conferences, in keeping with the theme of sustainability.
Salvador Urrutia Loucel, Latin American Director, World Coffee Research, opined that research was one solution. “Breeding climate resilient variants of the coffee bean is one key solution that coffee growing nations could benefit from if they collaborate on scientific research and knowledge exchange,” he said.
Dr Aaron Davis from the UK’s Kew Gardens noted the importance of diversity and adaptation in the industry.
He said the sector needs to look at alternative coffee species beyond Arabica and Robusta – the two dominant varieties today – which can be resilient to rapid climate change. “Some of these candidates include Sierra Leone coffee, Liberica, Excelsa, Zanzibar/Ibo, Racemosa among others, some of which are drought resistant,” he said.
While the World Coffee Conference winds up on Thursday, the 136th International Coffee Council is set for Friday, while delegates are set to visit the coffee plantations of Karnataka over the weekend.
First uploaded on: 28-09-2023 at 14:49 IST
Source link : https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/bangalore/bangalore-palace-coffee-8960005/lite/
Author :
Publish date : 2023-09-28 07:00:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.