Devoción Coffee – A Farm-to-Table Coffee Company
With Colombian coffee, Sutton set out to create Devoción, the only true farm-to-table coffee roaster.
Vietnam, USA
Onalee Duane May 21, 2021
Reimagining Vietnamese and specialty coffee, Nguyen Coffee Supply is the first coffee company of its kind in the United States. Sahra Nguyen, a first-generation Vietnamese American and the founder of Nguyen Coffee Supply, aims to bring Vietnamese coffee back into the global market as an equal to other specialty coffees. Maintaining a direct trade relationship with a farm in Da Lat, Vietnam, Nguyen Coffee Supply provides its customers with a unique and global culinary experience, one that originates in Vietnam’s famous Robusta bean and ends with roasting in Brooklyn, New York.
Investing in long-term partnerships with farmers as well as emphasizing environmental and cultural sustainability sets Nguyen Coffee Supply apart from other specialty coffee roasters. From bean to bag, Sahra Nguyen is forging a new narrative about Vietnamese specialty coffee while simultaneously prioritizing eco- and cultural consciousness.
Mood of Living: Where did you grow up?
Sahra Nguyen : I was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts.
MoL: Where did you go to school?
SN: I attended Boston Latin School for high school then the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) for undergrad.
MoL: Where do you live now?
SN: Brooklyn, New York.
MoL: How did you decide to get into the coffee industry?
SN: I noticed there was a huge lack in transparency and inclusion within the specialty coffee industry: Vietnamese coffee, culture AND farmers were being excluded! Vietnam is the second largest producer of coffee in the world. Excluding Vietnam from the values of specialty coffee culture means barring an entire region and community from the opportunity to improve their land, sustainability and lives.
MoL: Did you work anywhere else in coffee before starting your own business?
SN: No, I had no experience in coffee before starting Nguyen Coffee Supply.
MoL: Explain the coffee-making process from bean to bag.
SN: We have direct-trade relationships with farmers in Vietnam, which means we invest in long term partnerships to improve the quality of coffee and help them gain recognition in the specialty coffee community. We import green beans (non-roasted coffee) and roast them fresh in Brooklyn, New York. I’m currently the Head Roaster where I’ve developed every roast profile for our coffees. Then we package all of our roasted coffees by hand and ship them to people all around the country (and Canada).
MoL: How did you know this was what you wanted to do?
SN: I wanted to change the narrative that Vietnamese coffee was “cheap, gross and inferior” so I decided to change the system by creating my own supply chain and roasting coffee. I am deeply passionate about building a more sustainable and equitable world through increasing visibility and transparency for Vietnamese coffee farmers. Most of the industry perpetuates the same old narratives that render Vietnamese coffee farmers invisible and puts them in a box of “cheap” which ultimately devalues everything about their existence. The constant devaluing of Asian food & culture — and by default, Asian people — is wrong and must stop. This is why I knew I wanted to start Nguyen Coffee Supply.
MoL: What role did your family play in your journey?
SN: Most of my extended family still live in Vietnam, so they’ve been very instrumental in my journey. I’m very connected to my culture and having the ability to read and write in Vietnamese has helped me tremendously in working with partners in Vietnam.
MoL: What role did the direct trade with the farmer in Da Lat play in the development of Nguyen Coffee Supply?
SN: Having a direct trade relationship with our famer in Da Lat was critical in the development of Nguyen Coffee Supply because we were upholding the values of specialty coffee culture — collective investment and partnership for sustainability.
MoL: What sparked your passion for sustainability?
SN: I think about sustainability in many forms, including environmental sustainability, agricultural sustainability, economic sustainability, social sustainability and economic sustainability. Through Nguyen Coffee Supply, we are working towards building sustainability through all of these ways because ultimately — sustainability is about creating a world where everyone can live and thrive together. This is why we focus on both the coffee bean and the culture (phin brewing method) because we can’t talk about the product without talking about the people who are creators of the product. The more we can humanize the conversation around specialty coffee, the more we can connect our everyday consumption with the lives of people all along the supply chain. There is a human cost to everything within consumer culture — so if you want something cheap, understand there’s a cost to acquiring the product cheap which often includes labor exploitation and environmental harm. By focusing on social and cultural sustainability in the conversation of agricultural and environmental sustainability, we can truly work together to build a more equitable and sustainable future across all communities.
MoL: What are the sustainability goals you’re implementing in your business?
SN: We are huge champions of robusta coffee — Vietnam’s beloved bean. Not only is robusta coffee delicious, it is also a sustainable crop option due to its ability to be grown in diverse climates. I believe Vietnamese coffee and robusta coffee is the future of specialty coffee. While arabica is a great variety and will continue to be enjoyed by many, this idea that “100% arabica” is the golden standard for “specialty” will change. It’s not about 100% arabica or 100% robusta, it’s about diversifying and bringing the values of specialty coffee culture to robusta growers around the world. Specialty coffee isn’t just something we drink; specialty coffee is a collective investment from people all along the supply chain to improve lives and build a more sustainable world together. There’s no reason why Vietnam, the second largest producer of coffee in the world, should be left out of this conversation.
MoL: Do you lead an eco-conscious lifestyle? If so, how?
SN: I try my best every day to lead a more eco-conscious lifestyle, including eliminating single-use plastics in my life, eating less meat and contributing to sustainability projects. During the month of April, Nguyen Coffee Supply launched a “Plant a Tree” initiative where we donated a portion of sales to buy new coffee trees for our network of women farmers in Vietnam so that they can continue to grow specialty coffee. We also donated fruit trees to contribute to biodiversity on their land and increase their revenue streams.
MoL: What is your favorite part about running your own company?
SN: Creating a new world in my vision every day where we can directly change lives, culture and society to become more sustainable and equitable.
MoL: What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
SN: Know your “why.” Understand why you are doing something first and foremost then you can figure out the how.
Photography courtesy Nnguyen Coffee Supply
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