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Luang Prabang · Laos

Saffron Coffee

Since 2006 · Saffron Coffee founders — names unverified

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Overview

Saffron Coffee was founded in 2006 in Luang Prabang as a 'profit-for-purpose' alternative cash crop for hill-tribe farmers in northern Laos, after the outlawing of the opium harvest had stripped Hmong, Yao (Mien), Gasak and Khmu villages of much of their income. Nearly two decades on, Saffron sources organic, shade-grown Arabica directly from 800+ smallholder farmers across 4 provinces and 36 villages, roasts on the Mekong riverside in Luang Prabang, and is the operation most often credited with putting Laotian Arabica on the specialty coffee map.

Known for

  • Founded 2006 in Luang Prabang as a poppy-replacement project for hill tribe farmers
  • Sources from 800+ smallholders across 4 provinces and 36 villages in northern Laos
  • Hmong, Yao, Gasak and Khmu hill-tribe partner villages
  • Brew bar, on-site roaster and cherry-to-cup tour on Luang Prabang's Mekong riverside
  • Profit-for-purpose business model — reinvesting in farming families and access to specialty markets

Why it matters

Laos is dominated by Robusta from the Bolaven Plateau in the south, and northern Laos was practically unknown as a specialty Arabica origin before Saffron — in the early 2000s, opium was still the most reliable cash crop for the region's hill-tribe villages. Saffron's 2006 launch is the moment northern Laos shifted from opium replacement programs to a viable shade-grown coffee economy, and the operation's twenty-year track record is the reason Luang Prabang is now a credible specialty origin and tourist coffee destination.

Production

destoning
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head roaster
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color sorting
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roaster machine
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filter equipment
manual brew bar
cupping frequency
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roastery location
Luang Prabang, Laos
espresso equipment
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annual volume tonnes
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Café

Mekong riverside, Luang Prabang

Recognitions

  • Pioneer of northern Laos specialty Arabica sector

Sources

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