Twenty-five years of asking farmers what they need.
Union started in 2001 when two friends who had been roasting in London since the early nineties decided the way coffee was bought was broken. Certifications set a floor; nobody was paying for quality. So they went to the farms, cupped the coffee, and agreed a price with the people who grew it. That became Union Direct Trade.
The roastery has been in Silvertown since 2014. Everything is roasted to order in small batches and posted within a day. Around half of it goes to cafés, restaurants and offices; the rest goes through the letterbox.
The longest relationship is with the forest coffee growers of Yayu in Ethiopia, more than ten years and counting. The newest is Excelsa from Uganda, a species most people have never tasted.
- 2001
- Founded in East London
- 2014
- Roastery opens in Silvertown
- 10+ years
- Buying from Yayu, Ethiopia
- 24 hours
- From roast to post
- B Corp
- Certified
- 200g to 1kg
- Bag sizes, whole bean or ground
Union Direct Trade, in four lines.
We wrote our own sourcing standard in 2001 because the certifications did not go far enough. Every coffee we sell is bought this way, and the farmer's name is on the bag.
A price agreed with the farmer
Negotiated face to face, above the market and above the Fairtrade minimum, for quality we have cupped ourselves.
Long relationships
Most of our producers have sold to us for over five years; Yayu in Ethiopia for more than ten. We go back every season.
Quality scored and published
Every lot is cupped on arrival and scored. The score is on the product page, not in a drawer.
Roasted to order
Small-batch roasting in Silvertown, packed the same day, posted within 24 hours. The roast date is printed on every bag.