One of Fiji’s few coffee companies is taking the ‘bean to cup’ model a step further by ensuring every step of its coffee journey is carefully mapped out.
Since its start in 2020, South Pacific Coffee Company (SPCC) Fiji has been working to build a Fijian coffee industry, help local communities, and support the growth of a local coffee culture. “We saw an opportunity in the wild coffee growing in Fiji’s jungles,” Maikeli Dennis, SPCC’s Sales, Production, and Export Manager, told Fiji Traveller.
“Fiji imports almost all its coffee, but we knew there was potential here. Coffee is a long-term crop, and we wanted to start something that would benefit future generations.”
The company was founded by Maikeli’s father, Michael, who has deep roots in the hospitality industry, founding several café and restaurant businesses in Denarau.
According to Dennis, his father started SPCC after realising that Fiji, despite being a tourist hotspot, relied heavily on imported coffee to meet local demand. He already had some experience with the industry, having worked with Rancilio espresso machines for nearly 18 years.
Now SPCC Fiji works closely with iTaukei communities to harvest Fijian-grown coffee. “We conduct workshops with materials provided in iTaukei to educate rural landowners, particularly indigenous women,
on coffee, its value in the global supply chain, its lifecycle, best harvesting and pruning practices, and how it can contribute to Fiji’s growing agricultural and export industries.“
SPCC buys the wild cherries from highland communities, providing them with an additional source of income. “We follow industry best practices in pulping, fermenting, drying, and hulling the cherries to create an excellent grade of ‘Wild Organic Fiji’ green bean,” Dennis explains.
“We then roast and blend the beans… to ensure the best possible product. We also provide cafes and hotels with premium equipment and regular training to keep the coffee quality consistent.”
But it’s not just about the coffee itself. SPCC is deeply involved in the communities where it works. For most of these communities, there is just one gravel road from the nearest coastal township—whether that is Sigatoka, Tavua, or Nadi—to get to their villages in the interior of Viti Levu.
“Over 70% of our harvesting teams are women, and we support these communities through health and education projects for both rural farmers and the next generations,” says Dennis.
“Through sponsorship of rugby teams and tournaments, organising health and wellness clinics that provide NCD (non-communicable disease) and cancer screenings, and aiming to provide better harvesting and financial education for pickers to increase and utilise their hard-earned income, our commitment to suppliers continues to grow each season as we encounter new challenges in a rapidly changing economy.”
Growing Fiji’s coffee culture
Dennis says their biggest challenge is the lack of a coffee culture in Fiji.
“Yes, there is a growing coffee culture centred around the main Suva to Lautoka corridor, largely fuelled by tourism and the modern urban shift, but outside of that, coffee consumption is limited mainly to instant coffee if it’s within budget, he explains.
He says this means many people, particularly the rural highland communities, do not see the value in a product they do not consume.
“If Fiji consumed coffee on a daily basis like it consumes tea, sugar or kava, not only would we be more productive, but the wild jungles of coffee would be pristinely kept with a fully committed and combined effort for harvesting, better growing practices, better industry training for consumers, and an established export market of premium Fiji-grown coffee that would rival the market share for Fiji Water,” he believes.
The unique climate and geography of Fiji play a role in the taste of its coffee. Dennis says, “Although Fiji does not have the altitude of the main coffee regions of Central America, Brazil, PNG, and Hawaii, the nutritional content of our volcanic soil, abundance of rainfall and sunlight, and the lack of large commercial operations using pesticides in these communities provide a unique and raw flavour of coffee.”
And each village and region has its own microclimate, which makes every batch of coffee different, Dennis says.
The coffee jungles where SPCC sources its beans from are overgrown, with plants often reaching 8 to 10 metres in height, presenting extremely challenging harvesting conditions for low yields.
SPCC wants to expand its market. “We want to grow the coffee industry in Fiji first,” says Dennis.
“Once more local businesses are using Fijian-grown coffee, it will be easier to take it to the global market.”
But Dennis believes the impact of SPCC will go beyond business growth. “Coffee plants live for 30 to 50 years,” he says. “With proper care, better industry practices, government support, and a continued growth in Fiji’s coffee culture, we are dealing with a multi-generational crop that has the potential to change the lives of landowners and their families for decades to come.”
You can sample SPCC’s coffee at its cafe and store on the Nadi backroad.
By Prerna Priyanka
