Residents of Laguna along with tourists will soon get to taste Sta. Maria town’s Liberica Coffee recently won the Silver award in Signature Coffee Award: Latte at the Global Coffee Championship in Korea. The global winning coffee of farmers from Santa Maria, Laguna will be available at The Giving Café (TGC) in UPLB which opened yesterday. The store is located at the UPLB’s Student Union’s Soda Fountain.
“The Giving Cafe, a Social Enterprise by Henry & Sons, aims to build a beautiful coffee future by helping coffee farmers through its advocacy arm, The Foundation for sustainable coffee excellence (FSCE),” shares Michael Harris Conlin, 2019 PH Barista Champion and President and CEO of Henry and Sons.
Proceeds of TGC: UPLB will support its adopted coffee community, Barangay Juan Santiago, Santa Maria in Laguna. Barangay Juan Santiago coffee farming community is home to 38 families with 85,000 Liberica and Excelsa trees, the largest concentration of Liberica and Excelsa in Laguna, and possibly in the entire Calabarzon. The funds raised by TGC: UPLB will be used towards bio-dynamic farming practices, improving harvesting, processing, and the communities much needed coffee drying solutions.
Henry & Sons, in partnership with UPLB leadership, makes what’s old new again by bringing back the Student Union’s Soda Fountain cafeteria to life with mouthwatering home-cooked meals, ice cream, and coffee. Flank by TGC’s iconic cozy antique furniture, lighting, and books, the space is designed to encourage students, faculty, and visitors to strengthen the community around them and encourage to indulge in giving.
The Giving Café, with over 80 food and beverage offerings, is a hybrid restaurant and coffee shop that aims to contribute to the betterment of the local coffee industry and be part of something beyond the business. A place for comfort, The Giving Café is designed to be a safe haven for people looking to indulge in coffee experiences served with both excellence and compassion. The Giving Cafe focuses on bridging the community around it with the farming communities it adopts.
Beyond the advocacy, The Giving Café also offers guests multi-sensory experiences highlighting Henry& Sons’ F&B expertise. “We want to everyone to enjoy, eat well and indulge in giving by supporting laguna coffee farmers with every cup of coffee you purchase,” Conlin, adds.
TGC will also be featuring its popular Bloom Coffee collection, which is a unique line of coffees created by Henry & Sons to generate funds that will support the following purposes:
BEANS FOR THE LITTLE ONES – access to basic health necessities
BEANS WITHIN REACH – access to programs promoting traceability and accessibility
COFFEE FOR GREAT MINDS – access to education
CUP TO SEED – access to livelihood and harvest implements
THE GIVING WELL – access to clean and potable water.
For more information, visit www.henryandsons and www.thevault.ph.