“Coffee should be tasted the same way as a good wine: first with the eyes, for a creamy espresso, then with the nose, for its aroma, and finally with the mouth,” enthuses Bernard Quartier, president of the Institut pour le Développement des Cafés et Cafés-Brasseries (IDCCB).Equitable commerce and sustainable development are major war horses for producers, and more than 25 million people depend on the economy of coffee. The intention is laudable, although the measures are still rife with imperfections. For fifteen years Kraft Foods, at the sides of NGO (non-governmental organisations), has been committed. It finances programmes that provide aid in Peru, Vietnam, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador and Nicaragua and is starting measures to promote sustainable agriculture in Ethiopia. Kraft Foods has also entered into partnership with Rainforest Alliance, an NGO that is highly implicated in nature preservation. It is committed to buying increasing quantities of coffee certified by Rainforest Alliance (6,400 tonnes in 2005). The group also offers “Un Café pour agir” under the brand Jacques Vabre that consists of 100% coffee grains produced under supervision by Rainforest. Lavazza, meanwhile, has obtained approval for its project Tierra which it has supported for three years with Volcafè (one of the world’s largest coffee producers) and Rainforest Alliance. The goal is to help small producers in Honduras, Colombia and Peru improve their coffee as well as quality of life. The new product Tierra is entirely traceable. It is a blend of three types of green and treated Arabicas.Espresso, ristretto, long, cappucino, noisette or decaffeinated, the “petit noir” has always been popular among consumers. Moreover it is the only beverage whose sales are up (+5% last year) in cafés and café-pubs. This year it stars at Equip’Hôtel, particularly in the café-bar space designed by Miguel Cancio Martins to showcase the renewal of...