This year marked another step forward, refining how we work, expanding who we work with, and raising the bar on the coffees we are sourcing from partners at eleven different origins. We strengthened how we work in our Oslo-based production, expanded our sourcing, and brought in some of the most exciting coffees we’ve seen in years, from standout East African lots to innovative micro-lots across South America. As we wrap up 2025, here’s a look at what shaped the year and what’s ahead in 2026.
Highlights of this year
New Production Set Up
We formally turned “the Lab” into a specialised Production department, with a focused team led by Iaryna and Luis. Together they’re roasting, cataloguing, and shipping samples with the fastest possible turnaround. The restructure, new workflows, ROEST roasting integration, and Odoo tracking translate to reduced bottlenecks and give more consistent, reliable access to coffees. Learn more about our new production workflow and how it’s improving your access to coffee samples here.
East Africa: Strong Quality & Early Commitments
Kenya and Ethiopia came in exceptionally this year. Ethiopia delivered standout quality from the South and West, and thanks to earlier fieldwork and tighter planning, we secured better volumes and more consistent flavour profiles, including an excellent lineup of Grade 1 lots. If you want to learn more about Ethiopian coffee production and heirloom, click here.
For Kenya, 2025 fully lived up to expectations. By cupping earlier and more frequently, and by adapting our approach together with exporters and factories, we’ve built a more structured buying process with greater clarity and stronger traceability. This is also the first year we purchased coffees from the fly crop, allowing us to keep fresh Kenyan coffee on the offer list year-round. Explore this season’s highlights from Kenya and what made this year stand out here.
South America: Micro-Lots, Innovation & Consistency
Across South America, the focus was on innovation backed by solid consistency coming from trusted partnerships. In Colombia, closer quality control and direct collaborations opened the door to exceptional exotics, from standout Geishas to the much-loved Almíbar profiles. Learn more about one of our supplier projects in Colombia: Introducing La Soledad here.
Our Peruvian suppliers maintained positive development with clean, consistent washed coffees. New varieties like SL09, Sidra, and Typica Mejorado are gaining traction, supported by improved farmer services across key regions. Our Green Buyer, Rory, travelled to Peru this year with a group of roasters and brought back fresh insights directly from our partner farms. Read his travel stories here.
Our Brazilian partners ended the season with a strong harvest, offering everything from classic naturals to bold experimental lots. Our new AI green grader allowed us to assess the coffees with even more precise quality control in the production department. Another origin trip led our Green Buyer, Josh, to Brazil to visit friends and long-term partners. To hear about his trip, read his full travel report here.
A New Way to Book: Better Value & Stronger Partnerships
One of the biggest wins this year was the response to our new forward-booking options. More roasters are committing to larger volumes of key profiles, whether high-scoring Grade 2 Ethiopian lots or reliable community coffees from Peru and Brazil. This shift is already offering better price-to-quality value while helping build long-term, stable relationships at origin. Learn how to plan your coffee and explore our different purchase plans from Alec here.
Sustainability: Fully Compliant and EUDR-Ready
2025 marked a major step forward in sustainability. We now have systems in place and suppliers onboarded to become EUDR-aligned across all origins, with complete geolocation data, traceability documentation, and a strengthened supplier-onboarding process.
This year, we also launched a Code of Conduct Handbook with sustainability guidelines to support our social and environmental commitments across the producers we source from. Read more about EUDR and our roadmap here.
What we are looking forward to!
Tanzania Comeback: New coffees from East Africa
After a six-year pause, we’ve re-engaged with coffee producers from Tanzania, sourcing from the southern highlands in Mbeya & Songwe, where production has shifted and smallholder cooperatives now run washing stations. Improved export logistics and stronger local partnerships mean coffee moves more reliably from farm to port, and our AMCOS model supports quality at scale. The season’s lots are showing bright, region-typical character, washed lots with dark-cherry, floral, and citrus notes, and naturals that are complex, aromatic, and fruit-forward. We’re excited to offer these new coffees to you! Learn more about Tanzania's Specialty Coffee here or read the story of how Emil, a former employee, the career brought him all the way from Norway to Tanzania here.
Decaf Coffees from Colombia & Ethiopia
Around the world, more people are reaching for coffee they can enjoy any time of day, without the caffeine. Whether for health, balance, or simply taste, demand for decaf coffee is rising fast, and we are looking for options that don’t compromise on cup quality.
That’s where our new Colombian and Ethiopian decaf lots come in. We started sourcing and refining decaf lots that not only meet our quality requirements but also reflect the origin’s character, just like all our other lots. Our Colombian naturals and washed coffees come from the beautiful Huila region, and the coffee is naturally decaffeinated at origin using the E.A. method. We also began decaffeinating one of our favorite natural Ethiopian lots together with our partners at Coffein Compagnie in Germany. The result? Sweet, fruit-forward cups that reflect the same characteristics and quality as their caffeinated counterpart.
Our Procurement Team is Evolving
Also, this year, our team of green buyers and FOB representatives has done a fantastic job sourcing the best coffee lots for you.
After 11 years of leading our sourcing and procurement department, Joanne Berry is moving on to start an exciting new chapter in her life and career. Joanne has been an integral part of the Nordic Approach DNA, developing and refining our buying program for over a decade. She’ll be missed by both the team here in Oslo and our producing partners.
Even with that in mind, we’re excited about the development of this department, with a fantastic team ready to carry things forward. Our new structure brings together great teams: Adham and Sissay on the ground in Ethiopia, Josh and Rory in Oslo, and Juan working with Colombia and South America. If you want to learn more about these power teams, you can read about our green buyers and their day-to-day here.
Better Digital Tools are Coming
We have laid the foundation for upgraded digital systems and a smoother flow of information across our digital channels. Soon, you’ll see new product pages replacing both the old offer list and V-hub, making your sample orders easier and more seamless. Everything you need will be simpler to find, clearer, and more consistent. More information is coming soon!
What’s Ahead at Origin
We’re preparing to expand our Colombia concepts, especially for direct shipments and forward bookings of larger-volume lots. These coffees cup above 86 and offer a strong price-to-quality edge, made possible by long-standing relationships with producers and our much-appreciated green buyer, Enki, who works with them directly at origin. Early feedback from Uganda, Kenya, and our newest sourcing origin, Tanzania, looks promising. Based on what we’re tasting and hearing from producers, we’re expecting an excellent year for quality and micro-lots across most origins. Check our Offer List here.
If you have any questions about the upcoming year for new or old partnerships, we look forward to hearing from you.
