Owens Coffee deals exclusively in organic and Fairtrade coffee and its customer base extends beyond the south west.
Lorraine Bridden has a science background and worked in the biotech industry before deciding to change direction in 2010. A small coffee business called Owens Coffee in Devon was up for grabs, and she took it over, but instead of operating the business as a run-of-the-mill roastery or coffee house, she opted for quality and ethical awareness – and in doing so, she recognised the signs of the times and built up a small coffee empire that is now known beyond the borders of Devon.
Coffee is the second most important commodity in the world, and the impact on people and the environment is correspondingly large. But we are mostly unaware of the origins of the coffee beans processed for our morning coffee, or the espresso after lunch. However, this plays the main role for Owens Coffee: the roastery has been dealing exclusively with organic and Fairtrade coffee since 2018. With the help of the Soil Association – a British charity supporting organic farming – and Fairtrade, Lorraine and her team at Owens know exactly where the raw materials come from.
After strong growth, the company relocated to Ivybridge in 2018, where the headquarters, the roastery, and a shop selling specialty coffees, machines and accessories, are located.
“More and more customers want organic coffee,” said Liz Orgill, marketing director of Owens Coffee. “Customers are concerned about their health.” Liz recently visited a cooperative in Rwanda to see how producers work, and saw at first-hand how Fairtrade not only guarantees that local producers receive fair prices, but also that they produce the best quality. Fairtrade also helps to set up training farms, for example, where coffee farmers learn how to produce the best yields and which soils are suitable to grow their product.
The UK is known as a tea-loving nation but attitudes are changing – thanks in part to Owens Coffee. After all, 98 million cups of coffee are drunk daily in the UK, and the trend is rising. Younger generations, in particular, are enthusiastic about coffee; quality is playing an increasingly important role – for which they are also happy to pay a little more. “We want people to understand more about coffee,” Liz added. Owens is aware that there is still a lot to be done with regard to the climate and environmental impact of coffee; for example, it is not yet clear how emissions from the transport of coffee will be dealt with in the future, and Owens is actively trying to reduce those emissions.
Currently, the company´s customers come exclusively from the UK; it does not ship to other countries, but that might change in the future. Its Devon roots are essential to the team, but offering Fairtrade coffee from countries like Rwanda, with the product processed in Devon, shows that the coffee world is truly global.
Liz Orgill of Owens coffee has some advice for coffee lovers:
