FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Missoula MT. (June 29, 2005)- Winning Cup of Excellence® farmers, dignitaries and press broke into loud applause as the top winning coffee hit $16.30 lb. during today’s internet auction. "I feel so happy, I never expected that all my work and effort could have such recognition, I will work so hard next year," Rafael Pérez, owner San Roberto and the winning farmer.

Mercanta The Coffee Hunters, a UK based importer fought off bidding opponents to purchase the first place coffee lot for Monmouth Coffee Company-UK, Cafes Meo-France, Estate Coffee- Denmark, The Coffee Company-The Netherlands and Has Bean-UK.

Many of the El Salvador winning farmers work in partnership with their mill and today’s results are a recognition of this effort as well. "For us it is an honor that the coffee from one of the 1,900 small producers that we work with received not only the first place, but also the record price in the Salvadoran Cup of Excellence history," exclaimed Alfredo Battle manager of The Rio Zarco Mill.

By the time the 5-hour auction closed all 17 winning farmers were delighted at the bidders willingness to pay top dollar. Sixteen of the seventeen lots fetched a price over $3.00lb, fourteen priced well over $4.00lb. The average price per lot was $4.96lb with the average per pound for all of the auctioned coffee coming in at $4.76lb. This is multiple times the normal C price and well over normal specialty coffee prices.

The 2005 winning coffees were sold to a group of buyers representing both large and small companies and hailing from diverse international locations. Kaffebrenneriet, a Norwegian roaster-retailer took the second place coffee. Maruyama Coffee will split the winning third place coffee with US based Stumptown and a group of small Japanese roasters. Other US based companies, Liquid Planet, Batdorf and Bronson and Sweet Maria’s, will also bring home winning coffee. Solberg & Hansen, who has purchased Cup of Excellence coffee in every auction, was among the European winning bidders as well as the North Seas Neighbours Group made up of Skein Kaffebrenneri, Norway, and James Gourmet Coffee, UK. World Coffee, Caravan Coffee Co., Arab Coffee, Tashiro Coffee Asahi Coffee, Times Club, Wataru Coffee, Coffee Beans Sales, Kato Coffee and Toa Coffee rounded out the Japanese buyers. Timothy’s World Coffees was the sole Canadian winning bidder.

This was the third Cup of Excellence program for El Salvador. Ricardo Espitia, Executive Director for the Consejo Salvadoreño del Café couldn’t have been happier as he commented on the phone, “ There was such a sense of accomplishment as all of the prices went up. Cup of Excellence has created an excitement and a support for exemplary coffee in El Salvador that is so gratifying.”

For more information about the competition process, the international jury, the winning farms, membership, samples, or to register for the auction, log on to www.cupofexcellence.org. Presently in partnership with Brazil, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Bolivia and Colombia, the Cup of Excellence program is managed by the US based non-profit Alliance for Coffee Excellence, Inc.