I founded Chimney Fire Coffee in 2017 after working in coffee and cocoa traceability
During that time, one thing became very clear:
A huge amount of work goes into producing a great cup of coffee - but very little of the final value makes it back to the people growing it.
The Reality of Coffee
There are up to 150 beans in a double espresso - and only two beans inside each cherry.
So to make a single cup, a farmer has to pick around 75 coffee cherries.
The effort at origin is enormous.
But most of the money doesn’t stay there.
Across much of the industry, value is still captured further down the chain - by intermediaries - rather than the people actually producing the coffee.
From Experience
Working in coffee and cocoa traceability gave me a closer view of how those supply chains actually function.
Over time, it became clear how much value was created at origin - and how little of it stayed there.
After returning to the UK, I sourced our first batch of coffee directly from Robert - a Kenyan coffee agronomist and friend.
It wasn’t a big idea - just a more straightforward way of buying coffee.
Fewer layers, more direct relationships, and a clearer link between how coffee is bought and who benefits from it.
Building Chimney Fire Coffee
So I did what any sensible person would do - quit my job and start roasting coffee from a garden shed.
The idea was simple:
Buy coffee more directly.
Work with people I already knew and trusted from my time in the industry.
Build long-term relationships and agree prices that work on both sides.
In practice, that means fewer layers, more transparency, and more of the final value going back to the producers themselves.
What That Means Today
Today, we source over 90% of our coffee directly from producers.
We agree prices upfront and commit to contracts up to three years in advance - creating more certainty for the people we work with, and more consistency in the coffee itself.
Since moving to this model, the share of the final coffee price going back to producers has increased from around 65% to closer to 90%.
In the end, the quality of the coffee comes down to how it’s bought, not just how it’s roasted.
We’re still a small team roasting and packing coffee in Surrey.
But everything we do comes back to the same idea:
If the supply chain works properly, the coffee speaks for itself.
→ Learn more about how we source our coffee and create impact
