It's all about teamwork

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

- CHIT U. JUAN

There are many coffee competitions held in the country and in other parts of the world like Geneva, Korea and Denmark. Some baristas in our local cafes make a career out of their trade, just like tennis players and Olympians who train seriously to compete abroad. But what about teams? Is it just for basketball and football?

In coffee, we also have a team competition which was started by the ASEAN Coffee Federation (ACF) in 2019, right before the pandemic lockdowns. It is called the ASEAN Barista Team Competitions (ABTC) and it encourages baristas, today's sexiest job for the young coffee set, to work in teams. One wonders how busy cafés manage making 20 drinks in a few minutes. This is what the competition is about. Simulating a busy café set up, four members of a barista team prepare 20 different coffee concoctions, under time pressure.

What this emphasizes is teamwork. This July 19 in Iloilo's MAFBEX, we will witness teams of four from Davao and Iloilo compete to represent the region in the national finals at Enderun in October. The winners in October will be sent to Singapore in April 2026. We like supporting these events because they do not just promote coffee making, they promote the spirit of teamwork and good sportsmanship. Just like team sports, barista as a career can make one improve his or her values through teamwork. And that is why we commend this contest which was started by the ACF, based in Singapore, and brings the competition to the different ASEAN countries.