Qiong, coffee cupper – China 

Coffee cupping is the professional practice of observing the tastes and aromas of coffee.  

I chose to join the Starbucks Yunnan Farmer Support Center (FSC) because I majored in agriculture. As a Yunnanese, I naturally feel connected to coffee and tea, two major economic crops in Yunnan, and I used to have internship experience with a tea house as a tea cupper.  

In Yunnan, our FSC agronomists frequently visit the famers and teach them how to grow better coffee. Each year, our quality control team goes to the farms with the agronomists to do quality inspection, teaching farmers cupping, talking to them and helping them tackle the challenges in improving coffee quality. We are doing everything we can to support Yunnan farmers and the local community. One of my jobs is to go to coffee farms, teaching farmers how to do cupping. 

I love coffee and I think coffee is an art that reflects a taste of life. Every coffee has a story, and every coffee has its own flavor. You can always learn something new from each coffee.