Interview with Ben Cosford - owner of S.C.R

 

I’ve been roasting beans at home for 7 years now because I just love the smell of freshly roasted coffee. It’s something that I enjoy doing, it’s a product I really enjoy and one that I had some experience in so I thought I’d have a crack at turning it into a business. It’s a growing industry, especially in Australia where the specialty roasted coffee scene is really taking off because people are becoming informed about where their coffee comes from and are making more socially conscious consumer choices. People are also appreciating coffee more and developing more sophisticated palettes.

 

Well I’ve got a few favourites. My regular jaunt is Coffee Amigo’s in Salisbury. It’s run by Julio who also makes the coffee and he’s somewhat of an artisan. Julio is from El Salvador and we have good chats about where our coffee in Australia comes from, the ethical issues surrounding coffee farms in South America and how to pick out the best beans. I also like The Coffee Baron for a consistently good soy flat white (my drink of choice).

 

I have various suppliers who source beans from across South and Central America as well as in Africa and Indonesia. I buy mainly from small, family-run farms that employ around 10-15 people. 

What I look for from suppliers are those who have a direct relationship with the farms, they know the farmers names, they have met them and seen the farms and they share a common goal of improving the quality of life for those who work on the farms.

Many coffee farms have been traditionally exploited by those demanding a cheaper price for the bean. Our suppliers work with the farmers to discuss production and harvesting methods, to improve the quality of the crops which results in a more productive farm and a better cup of coffee. They help farmers get the most out of their crop by teaching them to hold out a little longer until the coffee cherry is more further developed, this way, they can actually charge a higher price for their produce.

What else is important to me about sourcing beans is making sure that my suppliers work directly with the farm so that I can ensure that the farm owner’s are receiving all the money I pay to purchase the green beans. Being able to oversee this aspect of my bean purchasing ensures transparency, which creates a fairer supply chain.

 

Yeah I do and I think lots of people these days care about where the items they consume come from, and who has been affected by their purchase. We have a lot of power as consumers, either retail or small business buyers and it’s easy with a little information to make better decisions. We are learning more and more about the true cost of cheap products and that exploitation is too often part of the mass production process. I chat to customers when they come to pick up beans I’ve roasted for them and we feel like we are now at a turning point to start saying no to cheap, low-quality stuff that is mass-produced and lacks transparency and start saying yes to local, to family-run, to small business, to direct supply, to paying not the minimum wage but the living wage, to being alert and compassionate with our purchasing power.

 

Well whilst we’re only really getting going, I like to think of SCR as a small business with a big dream. Our vision is to eventually give new arrivals to Australia work experience, and employment as we grow. We’ve already been working in our local community to make recently settled Australians feel welcome and included by sharing meals and holding events so that we can all get to know each other. We’ve been working to set up the infrastructure so that eventually we can provide paid employment opportunities in the coffee roasting and making business and hopefully set a path for a career in hospitality in a welcoming community.