Booking forward against the 2026/27 harvest: what's changed

By The Coffee Company CR Trade Desk

Forward contracts against the coming harvest used to open in January. This year we moved the first sampling window to November, mostly because two of our largest Tarrazú producers wanted earlier certainty on volume before committing labour for the picking season.

What this means for roasters

If you've booked forward with us before, expect the first sample set about six weeks earlier than last cycle. Allocation on our highest-scoring Tarrazú and West Valley lots is already tighter than in past years — several returning partners have asked to renew before samples even arrive.

As always, forward pricing is set from the farmgate figure we've agreed with the producer, not from a projection of where the C price will sit at harvest — the point of booking forward is to remove that uncertainty for both sides.