We’re excited to announce that !FEST Coffee Mission, a world-class specialty green coffee sourcing company, has joined PRF El Salvador as the Official Roasting Sponsor for our new Global Roasting Contest. 

The Ukrainian trader offers a range of coffee lots from Latin America, East Africa, and Indonesia. We’re thrilled to have them joining us at the Salamanca Exhibition Center in San Salvador from March 16-17, 2023.

In addition to supplying all roasting needs for the competition, !FEST will also be on hand to engage with Salvadoran producers, international roasters, and other coffee professionals to discuss green coffee sourcing opportunities and share its wealth of knowledge about Central American coffees.

Let’s take a closer look at the company and how it will elevate the PRF El Salvador experience.

What is !FEST Coffee Mission?

!FEST Coffee is a green coffee sourcing company that connects coffee producers and roasters. Since starting its sourcing operations in Central America, it’s gone on to become a regional expert.

CEO and green buyer Dimitri Slukin explains that !FEST Coffee provides full transparency on price, agricultural practices, and all other information regarding its coffees, giving clients peace of mind that their purchases enable producers to live well.

“Our values are long term relationships, transparency, and education,” he elaborates. “Roasters can always come with us to origin and source their coffees directly there, or buy lots from our stock in Ukraine, Europe, Turkey, and UAE – all sourced by our team.”

The company has since expanded to stock coffees from other global origins like Kenya, Ethiopia, and Indonesia – sourcing from more than 200 farms in total – but retains a major focus on its producing partners in Central and South America.

“Our mission is to close the gap between the farmer’s world and the consumer’s world,” Dimitri continues. “We do this by working closely with farmers on agricultural, financial, and educational levels. This enables us to be fully open with roasters while facilitating a direct connection with farmers, and even setting up sourcing trips.”

!FEST Coffee and the Global Roasting Contest

!FEST Coffee will be supplying all the green coffee used in our first-ever Global Roasting Contest. This will mean that competitors work with high-quality specialty coffee sourced from Central America.

Julio Guevara, Director of PRF, explains that this is the first roasting competition of its kind to take place in Central America.

“This is also the first time such an event has welcomed participation from both coffee producers and roasters,” he adds. “It’s great to see !FEST Coffee supporting an initiative that will benefit producers, roasters, and competitors alike with the experience of roasting samples – something that could greatly benefit the whole supply chain at the green coffee level.”

!FEST Coffee will also be supplying one of the two Aillio Bullet roasters used for the competition.

“We look at coffee as an art,” Dimitri says. “Growing coffee is an art, processing coffee is an art, and roasting coffee is an art. Every part is a complex and comprehensive topic which can be learned and improved upon with no end.”

He adds that PRF El Salvador attendees will benefit from this “behind the scenes” look at coffee roasting, gaining insights that will drive important conversations and new business partnerships.

“We want to be seen as a link between the producing and consuming world, so sponsoring a Global Roasting Contest at origin seems like the right thing to do,” Dmitri says.

All of our sponsors at PRF El Salvador share the values of the event, including a desire to outline El Salvador – and Central America as a whole – as a global coffee trade hub and a leader in specialty coffee innovation.

“Sharing is caring, and it represents so much value in our case,” Dimitri concludes. “If we succeed in establishing a great understanding of roasters’ needs and the challenges faced by producers, both parties can adapt and grow together to have profitable and sustainable businesses.”

For more information on the Global Roasting Contest, visit the page here. You can apply to compete here.
You can also learn more about PRF El Salvador by visiting our official news page or by contacting a member of our team via email.

To learn more about !FEST Coffee Mission, visit their website here.