Update: July 28, 2020 — Today, World Coffee Events (WCE) and the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) are announcing the cancellation of the 2020 World Coffee Championship events scheduled to take place in Melbourne and Warsaw, due to the impact of pandemic-related international visa and travel restrictions. Read the full announcement here.

Update: March 13, 2020 — As announced on March 11, the Specialty Coffee Association has been working with our partner venue in Poland to review options for postponing World of Coffee (WOC) in response to the global COVID-19 outbreak.

Today, we are announcing an agreement with our partners at PTAK Warsaw Expo to postpone World of Coffee to October 15–17, 2020, the only dates available in 2020. We have informed all of our exhibitors and visitors via email, and our exhibitions team will be sharing more information next week. We’d like to thank the team at PTAK for their help in rescheduling our event and demonstrating their commitment to the health of our community.

World of Coffee Warsaw will continue to host the 2020 World Coffee Roasting, Latte Art, Coffee in Good Spirits, and Cup Tasters Championships as well as the Cezve/Ibrik Championship. These competitions will be postponed to the new October 15–17 dates, with the World Coffee Events team continuing to work with competitors, judges, and licensed WCE Competition Bodies to address the challenges that COVID-19 presents. Any competitors, volunteers, or judges who anticipate issues participating during the new dates should get in contact with WCE directly by emailing info@wce2.flywheelsites.com.

We send a sincere thank you to all of our partners, sponsors, exhibitors, attendees and volunteers for their patience as we work to adapt and find solutions to the rapidly changing landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a reminder, the 2020 Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE), featuring the 2020 World Barista Championship and World Brewers Cup, has been postponed by the show organizers to November 3-6, 2020. Read the announcement published on March 11, 2020.

We continue our conversations with our partners at the Oregon Convention Center (OCC) and Travel Portland to review options for postponing Re:co Symposium and the Specialty Coffee Expo. The state of Oregon has canceled public gatherings of over 250 people until April 8. We will continue to share updates on our website as they become available.

We have received many messages of support from members of the specialty coffee community around the world, for which we’re very thankful, and also some new questions, to which we hope to respond as soon as possible.

Yannis Apostolopoulos
Chief Executive Officer
Specialty Coffee Association

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Update: March 12, 2020 — Since our announcement released yesterday, March 11, we have received many messages of support from members of the specialty coffee community around the world, for which we’re very thankful, and also some new questions, to which we hope to respond as soon as possible.

In that time, the US government established a ban on travel from Europe. The state of Oregon also announced a 30 day ban on gatherings over 250 people, set to end April 8.

As we announced yesterday, we are working with our partner venues in the US and Poland to review options for postponing Re:co Symposium, the Specialty Coffee Expo, and World of Coffee. We will continue to update this page with new details and inform everyone in our community of any major developments. Please see our full statement from yesterday below.

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Update: March 11, 2020 — Today, the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE) is announcing the postponement of their event until November 3-6, 2020, in light of local concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic. MICE is the host of the 2020 World Barista Championship and World Brewers Cup; consequently, these championships have also been rescheduled to November of 2020.

The producers of MICE have been working in close coordination with local governments since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak. Today’s decision was informed by consultation with both local officials and the community.

The other 2020 World Coffee Championships are being held at World of Coffee in Poland, produced by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). The SCA is in contact with its partner venues following today’s announcement from the World Health Organization recognizing the current COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic, to review options for postponing upcoming events, including World of Coffee. For more on this, please see this statement.

This postponement may present a number of logistical questions and changes, but we are committed to producing the best possible events, and to continue working with licensed WCE Competition Bodies to address any challenges that the still-evolving COVID-19 situation presents. Any competitors, volunteers, or judges who anticipate issues participating during the new dates should get in contact with WCE directly by emailing info@wce2.flywheelsites.com. National Champions who are not able to participate may be eligible to compete in 2021 through the Deferred Candidacy policy, which they can access by following this link.

We will work to share further updates with the community as soon as possible. We appreciate all the feedback and support as we work to address the diverse challenges facing our global community at this time.

YANNIS APOSTOLOPOULOS
CEO, Specialty Coffee Association

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Update: March 4, 2020 — As each event approaches, we have set up a task force that meets daily to discuss the latest developments and the inquiries coming in from the community to help us to determine a course of action. Our decisions and actions continue to be informed by local and global health authorities. We will continue to update this page and the FAQ below as the situation evolves and we receive new questions.

Our two trade shows and the World Championships play a critical role in supporting not only our industry and our community, but all activities of the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). While we pay close attention to the latest developments, we’re continuing to work hard to deliver fantastic events. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have questions or concerns by emailing hello@sca.coffee, and we look forward to seeing you soon.

The staff of World Coffee Events and the Specialty Coffee Association are carefully monitoring developments related to the ongoing COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) outbreak to understand its potential impact on our global community and activities. Our upcoming events, including Re:co Symposium, Specialty Coffee Expo, World of Coffee, and the World Coffee Championships, are scheduled to take place as planned.

As a global trade association, we exist to serve our industry and provide platforms and spaces for connection. For over thirty years, these events have been key deliverables of this ongoing commitment, and they play a critical role in supporting our community, especially in challenging times.

We are working with our partners at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, the Melbourne International Coffee Expo, and PTAK Warsaw Expo as well as with local government and health authorities to incorporate improved safety precautions. At the time of this update (on March 4), these include:

  • The use of a modified cupping protocol at the Specialty Coffee Expo and World of Coffee events developed to reduce the chances of cross-contamination. See the Modified SCA Cupping Protocol section at sca.coffee/covid19.

  • The availability of hand sanitizer stands, placed throughout the venues, at entrances, and in public spaces;

  • Clearly identified health information and first-aid points;

  • Regular disinfection of work surfaces;

We recommend that all on-site attendees, staff, and volunteers, follow World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations around health and hygiene, including:

  • Washing your hands, or applying hand-disinfection products available around the venues, frequently;

  • Avoiding close personal contact or greetings like hugging, kissing, and handshakes;

  • When feeling the urge to cough or sneeze, cover your face with the inside of your elbow;

  • Using paper handkerchiefs and promptly disposing of them;

  • Avoiding close contact with anyone showing signs of illness.

For the latest updates and recommendations on the ongoing COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, visit the WHO website here.

This page contains answers frequently asked questions regarding the impact of COVID-19 on our activities, as well as some resources for staying safe at our events, and contact information should you have any additional questions. We will update this page as the situation evolves.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for below and you’d like to get in touch with someone on our team, please email us at info@wce2.flywheelsites.com.

Frequently Asked Questions

The SCA has put together a taskforce, made up of leadership across the organization, that meets daily to review updates from local and global health organizations, updates from our event partners, and questions from our communities.

As each event approaches, we have set up a task force that meets daily to discuss the latest developments and the inquiries coming in from the community to help us to determine the safest course of action. Our decisions and actions continue to be informed by local and global health authorities. We will continue to update this page and the FAQ below as the situation evolves and we receive new questions.

Below are some relevant links to websites we are monitoring and updating that may be useful to you:

General relevant links:

Resources for those attending the Specialty Coffee Expo:

Resources for those attending the Melbourne World Coffee Championships:

Resources for those attending World of Coffee Warsaw:

The taskforce is also meeting with focus groups as needed to ensure we’re including community input as we move forward. We are working to provide relevant updates in as close to real time as possible on this page, but the best resources are to utilize the real-time updates from local and global health authorities.

Planned SCA events, including Expo, Re:co Symposium, World of Coffee, and the World Coffee Championships, will continue as scheduled. We are advising our staff, volunteers, exhibitors, and attendees everywhere to please follow your country’s health advisories regarding travel and gatherings. The SCA will continue to closely monitor updates from the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For a complete and up to date list of confirmed locations, please visit cdc.gov/coronavirus.

If you are an exhibitor or attendee registered to attend Expo, World of Coffee, or the World Coffee Championships, and you would like to get in touch with a member of our team, please find the relevant contact information following one of the links below.

Yes, the World Coffee Championships taking place at MICE May 4-7, 2020, are still scheduled to take place as planned. We are communicating with our partners in Australia on a daily basis and the trade show is still happening as planned.

If you are a competitor scheduled to participate at the championships in May and and government restrictions on travel due to COVID-19 no longer allow you to travel to the event, please get in touch with us via email at info@wce2.flywheelsites.com.

The COVID-19 outbreak has made global travel more complicated. Travelers may have restrictions imposed on them by various government entities or may be hesitant to travel due to the evolving situation. We know that this may make it difficult for Competition Bodies (CBs) to find WCE Representatives for their national championships. SCA/WCE wants to recognize that this situation may create unprecedented challenges for Competition Bodies. Therefore, if a CB is unable to find a WCE Rep for their championships, please let your Regional Community Director (RCD) know as soon as possible (find their contact information below). If no suitable Rep is available, WCE may allow the CB to run their championships without a WCE Rep present, and still be able to send their champions to compete at the World Coffee Championships. If your CB is having trouble confirming a WCE Rep, please inform WCE (info@wce2.flywheelsites.com) and your RCD as soon as possible, so that we can help determine the best solution available and ensure that your national champions are sanctioned.

  • Mansi Chokshi, Regional Community Director for the Americas – Email: mansic@sca.coffee
  • Kyonghee Shin, Regional Community Director for Asia-Pacific – Email: kyonghees@sca.coffee
  • Jackie Malone, Regional Community Director for Europe, Middle East, and Africa – Email: jackiem@sca.coffee

We are also developing some modified evaluation protocols for the coffee competitions, to minimize cross-contamination. We will be sharing those shortly, and you should make use of them to ensure the highest degree of safety at your event.

WCE does not require any WCE Representative to travel anywhere that they do not feel comfortable. We advise all WCE Representatives to err on the side of caution and to follow your country’s health advisories regarding travel and gatherings. We will be equally supportive of Competition Body events. Therefore, if a CB is unable to source a WCE Rep, we will not prohibit that CB from participating in the World Coffee Championships. We feel this is the safest and most respectful way to support our coffee communities around the world and move forward, due to the current challenges and unknowns. We are also developing some modified evaluation protocols for some of the competitions to minimize cross-contamination. We will be sharing those shortly, and you should make use of them if you do travel to an event, or take part in one in your own country. If you are a WCE Rep, please check your inbox for emails from WCE staff for more information.

  • Mansi Chokshi, Regional Community Director for the Americas – Email: mansic@sca.coffee
  • Kyonghee Shin, Regional Community Director for Asia-Pacific – Email: kyonghees@sca.coffee
  • Jackie Malone, Regional Community Director for Europe, Middle East, and Africa – Email: jackiem@sca.coffee

We are also developing some modified evaluation protocols for the coffee competitions, to minimize cross-contamination. We will be sharing those shortly, and you should make use of them to ensure the highest degree of safety at your event.

 

Get in Touch

Do you need to get in touch with someone on our team? Email us directly at info@wce2.flywheelsites.com.