Veronika, national barista champion – Italy

Coffee attracts me with its history, but also with its uniqueness and the amount of work that goes behind a regular cup of coffee. I was always fascinated by a simple coffee bean – its shape, aroma, but also by many legends and rituals connected with this fruit. It‘s amazing how we got from Kaldi in Ethiopia to one of the most consumed and famous beverages in the world.  

Being a woman in the coffee industry is special, because when people think about farmers, roasters or baristas, they usually think about male workers.  Women are highly present in fieldwork, harvest and sorting. Let’s not forget about some countries as Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda or Indonesia, where women play essential roles on farms. And I think that it would be nice having more women in trading, exporting and analysis or lab work where they are less present (now) because also there they can bring something new and help us grow up together. 

It’s very important for us women to remember and believe that we can do and reach anything.