PURE, ORGANIC MARLEY COFFEE - JAMAICA TOURIST ISSUE 17
The first and only organic coffee on the island, Marley Blue Mountain Coffee is the latest and greatest addition to the great Jamaican coffee offerings. Started by Rohan Marley at a small coffee farm in Portland 12 years ago, the venture has come full circle culminating in a pure and natural “Ital” product inspired by the Rastafari way of life. The sole distributor of organic Marley Coffee on the island of Jamaica, Brew Brothers Ltd joined Marley Coffee in 2010 to bring this unique product onto the international market.
The Marley name will always bring with it a certain mystique and fascination, as inevitably, there always is an interesting story to be discovered behind any endeavour pioneered by the Marley family. A vision inspired by Rohan Marley, the son of the late Bob Marley, Marley Coffee is no different. His journey into the discovery of coffee began in Ethiopia; “I never used to drink coffee until I traveled to Ethiopia, where they drink a lot of coffee. Once I tried the Ethiopian coffee, I got hooked. Back in Jamaica, I was inspired by all the small coffee roasters dotted along the roadside in the Blue Mountains.”
After purchasing the idyllic 52-acre property with its quaint cottage and flowing river in Chepstowe, Portland more than a decade ago, Rohan discovered that the property had once been a coffee farm through conversations with local farmers. Aiming to resurrect the coffee farm and provide opportunities and jobs to the local community, Rohan set out to accomplish his goal of producing organic coffee. Explains the coffee farmer; who lives by the Rastafari principles of natural living and stays true to the ‘movement of love, peace and unity’; “One of my main aims is to make sure that the lives of the local farmers are properly taken care of.”
It took the Marley family 12 years to acquire the organic certification allowing them to offer the most pristine coffee in Jamaica. Produced according to the pure and natural ‘Ital’ way, a word derived from the English word ‘vital’, the primary philosophy of an ‘Ital’ diet is to increase the life – or ‘Livity’ - energy that the Rastafari movement believes resides within all of us. Rohan, who pays famers twice the average wage, decided that his farm would not use pesticides and follow the ‘Ital’ way of natural farming. Explains Rohan; “My goal was to get the coffee certified as organic in Jamaica and then the United States.”
In 2010, Marley Coffee officially joined the other elite Jamaican Blue Mountain companies licensed to sell Blue Mountain Coffee. Says Balram Vaswani, CEO of Marley Coffee; “Marley coffee is a great marriage of two brands which both hold their own legacy.” Marley Coffee Farms received their organic license from the Jamaica Organic Agricultural Movement and USDA organic status in 2011.
Rohan’s aim is to operate a sustainable farm in the community; “I love my father very much and would like to carry on his legacy with the creativity he passed onto all of his children. I have used my talent to make Marley Coffee and, in my own way, make the world a better place.”
In line with the late reggae icon’s love for football, Marley Coffee has also established the ‘Kicks for a Cause’ charity. Explains the social entrepreneur; “The goal of our Foundation is to build soccer fields and run soccer camps for children in coffee-producing communities around the world. With a little bit of direction, they can turn around their lives.”
The spokesman for all of the Marley family’s business entities, Rohan plans to open a Marley Coffee House which will showcase the Marley family history and the organic movement in Jamaica. Marley Coffee will also be releasing a new, all handpicked Grade 1 Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee in the next few months called “Top Rankin”. All the coffee beans are small batch roasted to ensure utmost quality. Explains the coffee producer; “Our father taught us to make dreams a reality, 12 years ago I wanted to get into the coffee business and here I am today.”
Marley Coffee can be found in the US and Canada at Whole Foods, Dean & Deluca, Sobey’s and many Mom and Pop stores all throughout North America. To find Marley Coffee on island contact Brew Brothers at 876-953-3404 or visit www.brewbrotherslimited.com
The Marley name will always bring with it a certain mystique and fascination, as inevitably, there always is an interesting story to be discovered behind any endeavour pioneered by the Marley family. A vision inspired by Rohan Marley, the son of the late Bob Marley, Marley Coffee is no different. His journey into the discovery of coffee began in Ethiopia; “I never used to drink coffee until I traveled to Ethiopia, where they drink a lot of coffee. Once I tried the Ethiopian coffee, I got hooked. Back in Jamaica, I was inspired by all the small coffee roasters dotted along the roadside in the Blue Mountains.”
After purchasing the idyllic 52-acre property with its quaint cottage and flowing river in Chepstowe, Portland more than a decade ago, Rohan discovered that the property had once been a coffee farm through conversations with local farmers. Aiming to resurrect the coffee farm and provide opportunities and jobs to the local community, Rohan set out to accomplish his goal of producing organic coffee. Explains the coffee farmer; who lives by the Rastafari principles of natural living and stays true to the ‘movement of love, peace and unity’; “One of my main aims is to make sure that the lives of the local farmers are properly taken care of.”
It took the Marley family 12 years to acquire the organic certification allowing them to offer the most pristine coffee in Jamaica. Produced according to the pure and natural ‘Ital’ way, a word derived from the English word ‘vital’, the primary philosophy of an ‘Ital’ diet is to increase the life – or ‘Livity’ - energy that the Rastafari movement believes resides within all of us. Rohan, who pays famers twice the average wage, decided that his farm would not use pesticides and follow the ‘Ital’ way of natural farming. Explains Rohan; “My goal was to get the coffee certified as organic in Jamaica and then the United States.”
In 2010, Marley Coffee officially joined the other elite Jamaican Blue Mountain companies licensed to sell Blue Mountain Coffee. Says Balram Vaswani, CEO of Marley Coffee; “Marley coffee is a great marriage of two brands which both hold their own legacy.” Marley Coffee Farms received their organic license from the Jamaica Organic Agricultural Movement and USDA organic status in 2011.
Rohan’s aim is to operate a sustainable farm in the community; “I love my father very much and would like to carry on his legacy with the creativity he passed onto all of his children. I have used my talent to make Marley Coffee and, in my own way, make the world a better place.”
In line with the late reggae icon’s love for football, Marley Coffee has also established the ‘Kicks for a Cause’ charity. Explains the social entrepreneur; “The goal of our Foundation is to build soccer fields and run soccer camps for children in coffee-producing communities around the world. With a little bit of direction, they can turn around their lives.”
The spokesman for all of the Marley family’s business entities, Rohan plans to open a Marley Coffee House which will showcase the Marley family history and the organic movement in Jamaica. Marley Coffee will also be releasing a new, all handpicked Grade 1 Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee in the next few months called “Top Rankin”. All the coffee beans are small batch roasted to ensure utmost quality. Explains the coffee producer; “Our father taught us to make dreams a reality, 12 years ago I wanted to get into the coffee business and here I am today.”
Marley Coffee can be found in the US and Canada at Whole Foods, Dean & Deluca, Sobey’s and many Mom and Pop stores all throughout North America. To find Marley Coffee on island contact Brew Brothers at 876-953-3404 or visit www.brewbrotherslimited.com
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