Union hand-roasted coffee partners with the Uni of Warwick
London-based speciality coffee roaster, Union Hand-Roasted Coffee announced it has collaborated with the University of Warwick to provide students, staff and visitors to its campus with high quality speciality coffee. All University of Warwick-owned cafés, bars and restaurants as well as the University’s delivered food and drink business began serving Union Hand-Roasted Coffee on 1 September.
The Yayu Wild Forest Blend. Bringing this story to the students and staff of the University of Warwick is an important step in this journey.
Le Gusta, the campus Middle Eastern restaurant, has Maraba, a special single-origin filter offering. Union’s Bobolink from Brazil and Liberacion from Guatemala are also being served on campus. Retail packs will be available in 2017.
Jeremy Torz, co-founder and MD of Union Hand-Roasted, said, “We are delighted to announce our partnership with the University of Warwick, bringing the Union experience to students, staff and campus visitors alike. We’ve found that students today expect to be treated as discerning consumers and care for great quality produce – and this partnership trail blazes the way in bringing the boutique independent coffee sector into the world of campus services.”
All of Union’s coffee is sourced through Union Direct Trade, Union’s business model that works to develop the company’s long-term partnerships with farmers to improve their livelihoods, and produce increasingly high-quality coffee. All of Union’s coffees are 100 percent Arabica beans and scoring 84 and above on the Q-grade scale. (A score of at least 80 is required to be considered speciality coffee.)
“Since starting Union Hand-Roasted Coffee in 2001, we’ve remained committed to providing the best possible experience, whether you are a coffee farmer or a passionate coffee drinker,” Torz noted. “We’re looking forward to working with Warwick’s team of baristas and fellow coffee enthusiasts who share our own passion.”
Tony Howard, Warwick’s director of food and retail strategy, said that the University is excited to offer Union’s coffee on campus. “Over the last few years we’ve seen a shift in customer attitudes towards food and drink. Warwick is a diverse community and students, staff and visitors now expect great quality coffee and are increasingly aware and interested in the ethics of companies we are in partnership with,” he said. “It was one of the key reasons why the University was keen to work with Union, as their ethos resonates with the University’s core principals and environmental sustainability goals. I’m looking forward to working closely with the Union team over the next few years and developing our offer even further.”
Union Hand-Roasted Coffee, owned by Jeremy Torz and Steven Macatonia, was one of the first artisanal roasteries in the UK. The specialty roaster sources its coffee based on the ‘Union Direct Trade’ principle, signifying direct partnerships with producers and farmers to improve quality of coffee and livelihoods long-term, and a baseline premium 25 percent above the International Fairtrade minimum price.
Union Coffee can be purchased via a number of channels: roast to order from the Union website www.unionroasted.com, via retail packs available in Waitrose, Ocado and leading independent food stores, and from cafés and restaurants across the UK.
