The Conversation

Born into coffee


Listen Later

Inheriting a family business can be a tall order. All the more so when it's a coffee business, where men have traditionally dominated the sector in many countries that produce one of the world's most popular beverages. While women have a crucial role to play in an industry that supports 25 million rural households across the globe, they're often under-represented at the highest level.

Kim Chakanetsa hears from two women who've broken the mould. Heleanna Georgalis is the president of Moplaco Trading in Ethiopia, a company she took on when her father died in 2008. When she arrived, the system of trading coffee in the country was turned on its head, and she was forced to make changes to secure the future of the company.

Ana María Donneys from Colombia inherited a coffee producing company from her grandfather when she was only in her mid-twenties. As the first woman to lead the company, and the first to export their specialty coffee, she's overcome numerous challenges to succeed in a highly volatile market.

Both women discuss the future of coffee in the context of climate change, and how women can play a role.

Produced by Fiona Clampin

(Image: (L) Ana María Donneys, courtesy of Laura Victoria Usma Salazar. (R) Heleanna Georgalis, courtesy of Imran Mazar.)

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The ConversationBy BBC World Service

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

69 ratings


More shows like The Conversation

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,913 Listeners

Business Daily by BBC World Service

Business Daily

523 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,067 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,576 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,808 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,729 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,018 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

1,952 Listeners

Learning English Vocabulary by BBC Radio

Learning English Vocabulary

503 Listeners

Learning English Stories by BBC Radio

Learning English Stories

368 Listeners

Real English Conversations Podcast – Real English for Global Professionals | Speak Clearly & Confidently at Work by Real English Conversations: With Curtis Davies - English Podcast

Real English Conversations Podcast – Real English for Global Professionals | Speak Clearly & Confidently at Work

383 Listeners

RealLife English: Learn and Speak Confident, Natural English by RealLife English

RealLife English: Learn and Speak Confident, Natural English

453 Listeners

Learning English Grammar by BBC Radio

Learning English Grammar

311 Listeners

Learning English from the News by BBC Radio

Learning English from the News

238 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,245 Listeners

Americast by BBC News

Americast

779 Listeners

The Bomb by BBC World Service

The Bomb

1,010 Listeners

The British English Podcast by Charlie Baxter

The British English Podcast

64 Listeners

Thinking in English by Thomas Wilkinson

Thinking in English

106 Listeners

What in the World by BBC World Service

What in the World

23 Listeners

Learning English For Work by BBC News

Learning English For Work

41 Listeners

Learning Easy English by BBC

Learning Easy English

101 Listeners