H.E. Ms. Sahar Ghanem, Ambassador of Yemen.
During the World of Coffee Amsterdam 2018, the Yemen Embassy in The Hague celebrated the first participation of Yemeni specialty coffee in international expos.
It was a memorable moment as Yemeni coffee, the world birthplace of coffee cultivation, has been out of reach for years after it had dominated the world coffee trade for hundreds of years from Mokha port in Yemen – the origin of Mocha coffee.
For additional pictures, please open the link below: https://www.flickr.com/photos/109407424@N02/albums/72157695628914102
Following the risk-taking voyage of Mokhtar to export Yemeni coffee to the USA during 2015 war in Yemen, Dave Eggers wrote his best-seller story book of the young immigrant who took Yemen coffee to another level.
The Monk of Mokha does not only depict Mokhtar’s phenomenal journey but also relates a bit of a background of Yemeni coffee history.
The story and other incidents in recent years have brought Yemeni coffee back to spotlight, which triggered many producing and trading businesses to start trading, one of which is Qima Coffee which had an amazing stand at the World of Coffee 2018 representing Yemeni specialty coffee, and Mocha Hunters whose coffee was used by CP Wong from Hong Kong during the World Barista Championship 2018.
Other traders also attended the fair to gain better market access after having contributed to the development of the quality and value chain of the Yemeni coffee to position it in global market.
The Yemen Embassy in The Hague has promoted for the Dutch market during the last year because the Netherlands was historically the point from which coffee cultivation spread worldwide during the seventeenth century by Dutch sailors.
During the World of Coffee fair, Ms. Sahar Ghanem, the Yemeni Ambassador, has also participated in the panel discussion “Make Coffee, Not War”, with other panelists from the coffee industry, ACTED in Yemen and other NGOs, in which they discussed challenges and opportunities for Yemeni coffee during the conflict.
Following the fair, and as a form of support and appreciation, Yemeni partners were invited by Her Excellency to celebrate their success before their departure back to Yemen.
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Photography by the Embassy of Yemen in The Hague.
