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Strong News Served With Your Morning Coffee: El Salvador's Cup Of Excellence® Internet Auction Begins Today

Strong News Served With Your Morning Coffee: El Salvador's Cup Of Excellence® Internet Auction Begins Today

Published 06-29-05

Submitted by TechnoServe, Inc.

San Salvador, El Salvador - At exactly 9:00 a.m. EST today, bidders from around the globe will compete to purchase El Salvador's best coffees during the country's third annual Cup of Excellence® Internet auction, supported by TechnoServe and the Alliance for Coffee Excellence. Seventeen coffee lots up for auction were named winners the Cup of Excellence® nationwide coffee quality competition on May 20. These winners defeated over 250 other entries throughout a 7-week evaluation process. El Salvador's Cup of Excellence® competition and Internet auction are designed to promote the country as a producer of very high-quality coffees that command premium prices.

TechnoServe has helped to bring the Cup of Excellence® competition and Internet auction to El Salvador since 2003. The auction, hosted on www.cupofexcellence.org, is expected to garner heavy interest again this year. Buyers paid a total of $291,000 for the country's finest coffee last year, when Salvadoran women growers captured three of the top four auction spots.

Today's auction buyers will also have an opportunity to bid on coffee from farms directly assisted by TechnoServe. Two lots up for auction are beneficiaries of the Central American Coffee Project (PCCA), a program supported by TechnoServe and the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). TechnoServe PCCA improves infrastructure and provides quality control assistance to 12 small- and medium-sized coffee producers in Central America. During the Cup of Excellence® competition, the 17 winning coffees achieved a score of 84 or higher out of a possible 100. Mr. Rafael Enrique Silva Hoff of the SIBERIA farm, a member of the PCCA-assisted BEXCAFE group, achieved a score of 87.74 and is considered among the very best in the competition. His coffee received 6th place at the Cup ® competition and is expected to fetch a high price today.


"PCCA has not only given technical assistance to BEXCAFE's farm members, but also enabled several of them to travel to Seattle and visit with various international buyers," said Maria Kruger of PCCA. "BEXCAFE farmers have spoken face-to-face with many roasters and buyers, promoting the group's coffee quality as well as their participation in Internet auctions this year. By researching market trends and preferences, TechnoServe PCCA helps the producers to literally hear what the buyer needs. They can then make the necessary adjustments in order to become more competitive."

About the Cup of Excellence®: Owned by the non-profit Alliance for Coffee Excellence, the Cup® is the most stringent competition process in the industry. The 2005 Cup® is managed in partnership with six coffee producing countries: Brazil, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Bolivia and Colombia. Supported by trade memberships and sponsorships, the Cup® consistently discovers unique, high-quality coffees that prove to be exemplary of the caliber a country can produce. The El Salvador Cup® international jury, which determined the quality of each lot, represented specialty coffee roasters and importers from North and South America, Europe, and Japan.

About TechnoServe: Founded in 1968, TechnoServe helps entrepreneurial men and women in poor rural areas of the developing world to build businesses that provide jobs, income and economic opportunity. TechnoServe currently works in El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Nicaragua, Mozambique, Peru, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. TechnoServe was recognized as one of the world's "10 Most Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs for 2004" by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, founded by the creator of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. TechnoServe has been operating in Central America since 1976, and assists rural producers in the coffee, dairy and fresh produce sectors to access better markets and receive higher prices for their products.

For more information about TechnoServe, please contact:

  • Pam Kelly Glauber, Communications Coordinator, TechnoServe/U.S., (203) 899-3155, pglauber@tns.org
  • Or visit our web site: www.technoserve.org

    For more information about El Salvador's Cup of Excellence, or to register for samples, the auction and membership, please visit www.cupofexcellence.org.

    For more information about The Central American Coffee Project (PCCA), please contact:

  • Javier Echeverria, Regional Director, TechnoNicaragua, +(505) 254-7546 ext. 102, jecheverria@tns.org.ni
  • Maria Elena Kruger, Marketing, TechnoNicaragua, +(505) 254-7546 ext. 107, mkruger@tns.org.ni Or visit the web site: www.cafecentroamerica.com.
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    TechnoServe, Inc.

    TechnoServe, Inc.

    TechnoServe is leading a movement that empowers people in the developing world to build businesses that break the cycle of poverty. Growing enterprises generate jobs and other income opportunities for poor people, enabling them to improve their lives and secure a better future for their families. Since its founding in 1968, the U.S.-based nonprofit has helped to create or expand thousands of businesses, benefiting millions of people in more than 30 countries. The Financial Times has rated TechnoServe one of the top five NGOs for corporate partnerships. Charity Navigator has also awarded its highest Four Star ranking to TechnoServe.

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