COTECA Shines

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By Thomas Schmid

A  decade of success convinced COTECA organizers to expand the franchise to Asia as the fifth edition in Hamburg, Germany welcomed 3,600 coffee, tea, and cocoa professionals to what turned out to be the most successful show yet.

According to venue operator Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH, the three-day exhibition in October hosted 136 exhibitors from 35 countries and all continents, signifying that COTECA has indeed matured into one of the most important and influential coffee and tea industry events in the world.

Next fall the show will move to Bangkok, Thailand. COTECA Asia, scheduled for Nov. 27-28, 2019 will be managed by Quartz Business Media, a leading international event organizer based in UK with global sales and support by October Multimedia Co., Ltd., publishers of this magazine.

Buyers marveled at the sheer diversity of products and attended a rich support program of keynote speeches and presentations, as well as numerous coffee and tea cuppings at the Hamburg event.

“Together with our partner, the Kaffee Campus of the German Roasters Guild, we succeeded in meeting the high expectations of exhibitors and visitors, covering the current industry insights and trends and communicating them from Hamburg to the world,” said Hamburg Messe president and c.e.o. Bernd Aufderheide.

German Roasters Guild chairman Enver Atabay said the German Kaffee Campus was even more lively and better attended than in 2016. “We took the opportunity for a wider view in our conferences, workshops,  and cuppings and addressed not only coffee subjects but also tea – that was very well received by the expert audience. The overall quality of COTECA is outstanding. That was evident in the many interesting and well-informed discussions we had here,” he said.

Tea exporters from mainland China and Taiwan made a strong presence at the show, saying their attendance was warranted to meet growing demand in Europe for green tea varieties. An eclectic mix of Asian tea companies was supplemented by regulars like the Sri Lanka Tea Board and producers from India, and more “exotic” locales like Nepal. German tea importers and trading companies such as Hälssen & Lyon and Dethlefsen & Balk played a prominent role.

The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) hosted a large pavilion featuring more than a dozen tea manufacturers from the country.

Kenya several years ago overtook India and Sri Lanka as the world’s largest tea exporter by volume. In 2017, tea exports reached an impressive 417 million kilos, produced by some 650,000 smallholder growers. Marketing staff at the booth highlighted purple tea. While output currently accounts for less than 1% of Kenya’s total tea production, the country intends to greatly increase that proportion in the years to come. Kenya is also well-known for its specialty coffees. The country presented its excellent arabica crops in a separate large booth, which showcased 15 different companies.

Rather interesting was the marketing approach of Sheka Forest Coffee from Ethiopia, a company that claimed to pay its smallholders 30-40% above fair trade certified prices for highland grown arabica.

Meanwhile, the embassy of El Salvador brought together a number of single-estate coffee companies at its booth. Swiss coffee corporation Volcafé, which sponsored several presentations as part of COTECA’s support program, was strategically located near the cupping rooms, while the Hamburg outlet of Indonesia’s international trade promotion center hosted a variety of tea and coffee firms from the homeland in a large shared booth close to the hall’s main entrance.    

The machinery and equipment segment featured some notable companies, including Polish roaster manufacturer Coffed, founded in 2008, and long-standing Swiss industrial mixing and blending machine manufacturer, Prodima. Renowned lab instrument developer Perten put a spotlight on its latest moisture metering and other analyzing tools. UK firm Ikawa introduced the latest version of its ingenious portable sample roaster, the Pro V3. The unit was only rolled out in June this year and due to its compact size is a “must-have” for any roaster, barista, and traveling coffee buyer. Australia’s Flavourtech revolutionized the soluble and ready-to-drink coffee industry with its aroma-preserving extraction and condensing technology and – through its sales and marketing director Leon Skaliotis – provided a number of interesting and well-attended presentations at the show.

The clear emphasis among the packaging and filter solution providers was environmentally friendly, biodegradable, and home compostable materials. Of particular note were South Korea’s Coreshtech Co. and Japan’s OHKI Co., both of which showcased their respective non-GMO PLA (poly-lactic acid) filters and tea bags, which they claimed met with great interest. The cellulose-derived disposable sealing lids and coffee cups of German producer EarthLid attracted attention not only because they are fully recyclable (and indeed compostable) but also because thanks to their special manufacturing method don’t leak even after a prolonged time holding hot beverages. Lithuanian company LitPrint, meanwhile, lured interested visitors in droves with its water-based printing inks and PLA-based packaging foils.

Where COTECA was able to bring together mainstream firms of all types, it also welcomed a slew of companies whose products were… well… a bit more unusual. Topping this list were the quirky outfits created by German fashion designer couple Madeleine Möller and Matthias Köhler. Their line of ladies and gentlemen’s jackets are tailored from recycled coffee sacks made from 100% jute and (probably to safeguard against potential itchiness) lined with silk or velvet.

COTECA Asia (Bangkok, Thailand, November 27-28, 2019)

“We are very proud that COTECA will transcend European borders in 2019,” says Claudia Johannsen, business unit leader at Hamburg Messe. “The Asian market is very exciting and the industry can look forward to one of the most important business meeting places next year,” she said. Steve Diprose, managing director of Quartz Business Media, said: “We’re very excited to be a part of this launch event as having previous expertise with running events in Asia; we feel we’re well suited for the challenge. The COTECA brand has such a strong following and we feel this allegiance to the brand will follow into Asia. We’re delighted to work alongside Hamburg Messe on this new venture.”