Professional guild created for coffee technicians

The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) has announced that the Coffee Technicians Guild has officially launched and is accepting members. The Coffee Technicians Guild (CTG) is the first SCAA guild to launch in over 13 years for a new member category. The Roasters Guild launched in 2000 and the Barista Guild of America in 2003. “Coffee Technicians have not been formally represented by a guild up to this point, and there have been no formal education programs for this area of focus. There is clear momentum towards developing a guild for coffee technicians, and it has been building over the past couple of years,” says SCAA’s Executive Director Ric Rhinehart. “We’re looking forward to seeing this group usher in a new era for the coffee technician trade.” In February of this year, a working group of coffee technicians convened to begin the work necessary to develop a mission statement, vision and ultimately a charter for the new guild. Over 300 coffee technicians have added themselves to the interest list since April. To address the challenges facing the coffee technician community, the CTG will work to develop educational programs and standards that will guide the technician professional and provide a framework for potential employers to distinguish qualified individuals among the pool of candidates. This work will begin at the 2016 Coffee Technicians Guild Inaugural Summit which will be held from 3 to 5 November, 2016 in Kansas City. The goal of the event is to vet a set of educational standards for a coffee technicians certificate program and begin to lay the groundwork for the development of a competency test. The CTG will be a global membership dedicated to supporting the specialty coffee industry through the development of professional technicians. The CTG plans to host their next event in Europe and has a goal to provide local opportunities to members around the world.