For over a decade, Claudia Rocío Gómez, or “Claudy” as most people know her, has helped shape Sustainable Harvest’s work in Colombia, supporting producers, managing trade operations, and ensuring coffee quality from origin to destination. Her story captures the heart of Relationship Coffee – built on transparency, fueled by collaboration, and driven by a commitment to create lasting change in coffee-producing communities.
In this Q&A, Claudy shares her path from a career in food engineering to one in coffee, her favorite parts of working with farmers, and how Colombia’s coffee industry continues to evolve.
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Sustainable Harvest (SH): Claudy, tell us a bit about your background as a food engineer and how your coffee career began.
Claudy Gómez (CG): Sure! I’m a Food Engineer from Jorge Tadeo Lozano University in Bogotá. Before finishing my degree, I got the opportunity to do an internship with the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia. I applied, got accepted, and started working in their domestic market lab at the Federation’s main office in Bogotá.
There, I worked in research and development, creating coffee-based beverages that were later implemented in the Federation’s coffee shops. I also focused on quality control and on applying standards for Colombian coffee production. That was truly my school for the five years I worked there. It’s where I learned everything about coffee.
After that, I joined a couple of exporting companies, some focused on green coffee and others on roasted coffee. Later, I decided to start my own coffee training school, called “Grupo Café”, where we worked for over six years advising organizations on sensory analysis, roasting, and cupping. We also had a barista training program and helped prepare baristas for national competitions.
It was a beautiful time, but then came a crisis in Colombian coffee production. Yields dropped drastically, and for many groups, it became difficult to afford consulting or training services, so we decided to close the school.
SH: And how did you start working at Sustainable Harvest?
CG: I started about 14 years ago. My first contact with Sustainable Harvest was as a volunteer during the Let’s Talk Coffee event held in Armenia, Colombia, around 2008.
Later, I attended a Q Instructor course in Selva Negra, Nicaragua, and there I learned even more about Sustainable Harvest’s work in the region and culture. A few years later, when the company decided to open an office in Bogotá, they reached out to me. We already knew each other, so I interviewed and officially joined the team.
My first role was in product development. Then I moved into the supply chain area, supporting producer organizations and strengthening the volume of coffees we managed.
Over time, I got more involved in trading, and I also took on a global quality control role, helping standardize our processes across labs in Peru, Mexico, and North America to ensure we were all speaking the same language and following the same standards.
Currently, I manage the trade area in Colombia, I handle contracts, price fixations, and oversee all the quality control work in the lab. I love this job because it keeps me close to the coffee. I get to follow the harvest, see which groups are excelling in quality, and uncover new coffees to share with our customers.
SH: From all the roles and experiences you've had at Sustainable Harvest, what do you enjoy the most about your job?
CG: Without a doubt, working with producers! That’s what gives me the most satisfaction. Understanding their reality, knowing their challenges, and seeing how our work directly impacts their families and communities is incredibly rewarding.
Every improvement we achieve, whether it’s through better prices or living income programs, has a real impact on their quality of life. And producers are always so grateful. Over time, we’ve built a relationship of trust and family, not only between us and the producers, but also with our clients.
Another important part of our work is helping producers better understand the commercial side of coffee, how to negotiate, how to interpret prices, and how to avoid costly mistakes. That knowledge is key, and I think it’s one of the main reasons many organizations continue to work with us after so many years.
SH: And if you could speak directly to a client or supplier who doesn't work with us yet, what would you say makes Sustainable Harvest different?
CG: I’d say our values, especially transparency and direct relationships. That’s what truly sets us apart.
At Sustainable Harvest, all our contracts are transparent. The producer, the exporter and the client all know exactly the price and conditions. There are no hidden intermediaries or confusing details.
We also invest in training, workshops, courses, and development programs, which are a key part of our relationship with producers. I think that’s what really gives value to our Relationship Coffee model.
Many importers talk about having similar models, but when you visit the groups, you realize producers often don’t even know who they’re selling to or how much they’re actually earning. In our case, the connection is direct and real.
We also encourage communication between clients and producers. Some clients message producers directly on WhatsApp, and that, to me, really shows the level of trust and closeness we’ve built over the years.
SH: And now tell me, in your day-to-day work, what would you say are the biggest challenges in your role, the ones you wish roasters understood better?
CG: One of the biggest challenges is the impact of climate change. We work with an agricultural product that depends on so many variables, the weather, agronomic practices, flowering, rainfall, everything affects it.
Sometimes clients request a very specific profile, like an 85-point Tolima, right when the region isn’t in its main harvest. So it’s difficult to achieve that exact cup, not because producers don’t want to, but because nature has its own timing.
Logistics is another challenge. In Colombia, we often face trucker strikes, road blockages. Those can delay shipments, and while we do everything we can to stay on schedule, some factors are just beyond our control.
And, of course, there’s the issue of security. In some regions, producers face very difficult situations, and that also affects the supply chain. Still, we continue working with commitment and optimism, hoping things will keep improving.
SH: Changing tips a bit, you've been in the coffee industry for a long time. Have you seen Colombia's coffee sector evolve?
CG: Production and productivity have improved a lot! In recent years, Colombia has recovered levels that we hadn’t seen in a long time. Today, departments like Tolima and Huila are leaders in both productivity and quality.
There’s also been a big shift in producer knowledge. Now producers understand cup profiles, client demands, and how to adjust their processes to meet those expectations.
SH: And within the producer groups we work with at Sustainable Harvest, what changes have you noticed?
CC: So many, especially in terms of quality. In Tolima, for example, producers have become experts in fermentation processes. They experiment, and they truly understand how each variable impacts the final cup.
We’ve also seen progress in Huila, where producers are mastering a variety of profiles. From UGQ coffees to microlots from women and young producers, there’s a lot of consistency and growth.
Competitions and national events have helped too. They’ve given producers visibility, raised the bar, and allowed clients to get a closer look at the true value of Colombian coffee.
SH: After so many years cupping and drinking different coffees, I'm sure you have your favorites. Do you have a region or profile you love the most?
CG: (Laughs) That’s a tough one! If I say Tolima, I’ll get in trouble with Huila! But yes, I have to admit, southern Tolima produces spectacular coffees. They’re sweet, with notes of peach, nectarine, and marshmallow… very refreshing.
In the lab, I love playing around with blends and different brewing methods. For example, Leo [Traceable Logistics Specialist] and I usually brew three French presses a day, and lately, we’ve been using the Origami dripper to highlight certain coffees’ attributes.
Colombian coffee keeps surprising us every single day. Each harvest, each profile, each story, that’s what makes work so exciting!
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