Buying coffee without a broker....

[GreenDude]

I am curious if anyone has any info on bringing coffee into the US, without using a broker. I am talking about containers btw. I really have no idea where to begin, mainly with permits, etc... If anybody has any links or such It'll be much appreciated!!

 

[John P]

I import plenty of stuff.. but I haven't graduated to importing coffee myself until I can afford to visit the farms.

But the basics are:

Do a bit of searching on the FDA site,
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/imports.html
apply for the applicable importers license,
some farms have websites, or phone contact... others you need to either pay a liason, or fly there yourself.
Import arrangements aren't that difficult. They will have shipping companies they generally work with. File the necessary paperwork... i.e. "advance notice" and it will arrive in port, take a couple of days to clear customs... you may need to issue another check at this time for import tax and custom fees... then it will be whisked away to your location. (more or less)

simple. :shock:

 

[cafedonjulian]

Guatemalan coffee producer-direct exporter

I''m a coffee producer-exporter-roaster from Guatemala. We export manily green coffee (around 90% of the production) without broker to roasters in the US (containers quantities). It is very easy to import coffee directly in the USA and I would say all forwarding agencies know what is needed to do the import. I think the most difficult part is to reach an agreement with the coffee producer about the payment method. What we personally do is we receive payments through paypal with the posibility of a refund in case something goes out wrong which is unlikely to happen. We encourage our buyers to come to the farm for a day or two (around $800 investment) for them to know the plantation and have the real sense of where the coffee is coming from. Feel free to send any questions or comments.

 

[telluridecoffee]

Buying coffee without a broker

Don''t do it. I was a green coffee trader for 15 years. You''re not going to save much, you''ll have way more liability than you want, have to deal with broken bags, insurance claims, possible quality claims against exporters etc etc...need I go on? Deal with a reputable importer. I can recommend if anyone''s interested

Good luck

Mick Hill - Green Coffee Buyer

 

[GreenDude]

Thanks for the link and Info JohnP!

Seems I have my work cut out for me :roll:

 

[GreenDude]

Re: Buying coffee without a broker

Don''t do it. I was a green coffee trader for 15 years. You''re not going to save much, you''ll have way more liability than you want, have to deal with broken bags, insurance claims, possible quality claims against exporters etc etc...need I go on? Deal with a reputable importer. I can recommend if anyone''s interested

Good luck

Mick Hill - Green Coffee Buyer

LMAO! Words of wisdom I take it? lol

 

[wmark]

Despite the words of wisdom above, I am forging ahead with importation. How else do you find special/different beans ?

 

[CCCRoaster]

There are tons of different/special offerings at the higher end brokers. You could make a full time job of just tasting from one or two brokers that you like/trust. Unless you have the time and money to travel to origin and develop relationships with farmers, and keep in mind that it may take many trips to find just one good coffee, you may be best served by using a broker. A good broker gets to know your tastes over time and really simplifies coffee buying.

 

[wmark]

Would anyone care to post or send me the higher end brokers ?
I am familiar with the standard biggies.
Preferably on the east coast as freight from the west coast would be prohibitive.

[email protected]

 

[truebean1]

The highest end I have found is Elan Organics (researched it for about six months with a consultant and help from others in the biz). They do their research and are VERY well respected. They are even work on a higher standard than fair trade ECO-Q that will be focused on all the right needs of our industry from farmer to brewed pot and pulled shot. They are out of San Diego but have a large facility on the east coast... Jersey I think. Look them up the are really a great group of people.

Kaydi is who we deal with.

http://elanorganic.com/

 

[Alun_evans]

I would work this back in reverse... meaning the actual physical import of the coffee into the USA is probably the very least of your worries. Johns link does cover most of the FDA requirements. You need to register your facility at origin (the warehouse) as well as registering yourself in the USA. This helps streamline clearance. US Customs are fairly fanatical about taking samples...every shipment we send into the USA has at least 12 samples taken from it. I guess this is to varify that fumigation and/or the phyotosanitary certification is correct. Docs you need are (in no particular order)> the OBL from the shipping line, the Invoice, packing list, Phyotosanitary Certificate, ICO Certificate, FDA prior notification (fill out EVERY shipment online). You also need to make sure you correctly line the shipping container you use with card...and check the container prior to loading to make sure the last shipper did not use it for motor parts!!!!!

But... this above is as I mentioned the easy part.

The area I would be concerned about is either end of the shipping. You need to really know coffee to be successful in this part of the trade. (If you are buying avergae greens you are going to be just another broker trying to make a buck$$. You need to be able to offer unique, rare ande/or unusual coffees that attract a premium. To do this really, in all honesty, would require you spending a lot of time at origin sourcing yourself. This, I reckon, is key

Then of course the other end of the equation is being able to get what you have to roasters. You will have the problems mentioned above, especially if you select poor quality containers, poor trans-shipping schedules, lower quality facilities at origin where 'stuffing' a container can go badly wrong and lead to mould/mildew and other humidity damage.

Good luck with this....

 

[wmark]

Thanks for all the above link and advice. Amazing how the west coast gets the good and harder to find beans.

I was primarily trying to source for myself to use but will probably end up selling off a portion as 37,000 lbs or so is a big committment.

 

[Alun_evans]

Actually there is no reason why you need to bring in a full conta9iner (18,000kg). You can LCL what you buy and share container space. I know a cafe/roaster in the midwest that brings in 2000kg at a time, mixed sub-origins, all from Indonesia.

 

[wmark]

Unfortunately for me, with this particular vendor, it is all or nothing.

 

[Alun_evans]

Hmm... are you committed to the deal?????? I am quite convinced that often buying a FCL (18MT) is thrust onto unsuspecting buyers. It may not be like this in your case, but here at origin I am often happier to make sure a roaster gets what they want... often that may be a lot less than a container load.