July 2010 Coffee News

-Challenges Remain One Year After Honduran Coup
-Honduras Leaves World Cup Disappointed
-Our 2010 Coffee Has Reached the US

Our family has been enjoying a quiet and relaxing summer and we hope you have been too. Down in Honduras, however, things have not been as quiet, with protesters marking the one year anniversary of last year's disruptive coup. We offer links to more information on the situation below as well as an update on Honduras' performance in the World Cup.

Challenges Remain One Year After Honduran Coup
With things here and on the coffee farm so quiet, we turned to the internet for news about Honduras for this email and were reminded that June 28th marked one year since President Zelaya was removed from power in a coup. Elections were held in November and President Lobo has since been trying to bring the country back together while trying to satisfy a still mistrustful international community. On the anniversary of the coup, protesters from the Frente Nacional de Resistencia Popular (National Front of Popular Resistance, FNRP) managed to shut down highways throughout Honduras. Journalists reporting in The Nation and Huffington Post also warn of coup attempts against the current government and a crisis of legitimacy as President Lobo tries to walk a fine line between conservative supporters of the coup and the international community's demands for reconciliation.

Honduras Leaves World Cup Disappointed
Unfortunately, news about Honduras from the World Cup wasn't any more positive than the political news back home. While the Honduran team played respectably in South Africa, they lost their first two games against Chili and Spain and then tied with Switzerland -- all without scoring even one point. They did make their mark, however, preventing Switzerland from moving forward and making history with the three Palacio brothers becoming the first three siblings in history to play together in the World Cup. Even without Honduras in the lineup, our family continues to enjoy the exciting global tournament. You can see the current schedule, learn more about the remaining eight teams and see photos of all of the beautiful South African locations at www.FIFA.com.

Our Coffee Has Reached the US
We're relieved to announce that our 2010 coffee has reached dry land and is now speeding by rail somewhere between Norfolk, Virginia and Minneapolis, Minnesota. While the whole exporting/importing process has taken longer than we thought, so far it is going smoothly for our first attempt at serving as our own importer. We look forward to seeing it safe and sound in our roaster's warehouse in the next week or so.