A Message from our Chairman

​Sir Winston Churchill once said “without a measureless and perpetual uncertainty, the drama of human life would be destroyed”.
 
Well, who then could, from a Churchillian perspective, not say that 2017 has again added richly to our lives? Very few of us are anymore the wiser than we were 12 months ago as to what the future holds for this small Island of ours. My previous musings on Brexit and political leadership posed in last year’s message seem not only to be unresolved, but arguably deepened by political intransigence abroad and an incompetently handled snap election at home.
 
Even my politically sensitive antenna would not have correctly called a bet on the popularity stakes, leading to the drama of either the rise or fall of Mugabe or Corbyn this year.
 
Merely as an aside, it appears I am one of the very few people who has not had an “inappropriate” approach in the last few years; I am feeling rather left out! Where is a Harvey Wine-stain when you need one?

​Thankfully, in contrast, coffee markets have remained relatively stable with a general acceptance in the trade that the previously forecast overall shortfall in the 16/17 harvest proved pessimistic and perhaps a slight global surplus was the reality. Even so, Robusta supply remains tight and with an off-cycle Brazil crop for 17/18 there seems little grounds to expect prices to fall much lower than current ranges, notwithstanding the headwind of a weak sterling against the dollar. 
 
At home, consumption growth has arguably slowed, perhaps on the back of inflationary pressures and general saturation of some high streets. Even so, optimism must lie in the fact that despite the dramatic expansion of coffee shops and public interest at a retail level,  our annual per capita consumption is still only half that of our continental neighbours.
 
Innovation, quality and the current political mantra of increased productivity are therefore never more relevant than to our very own industry. To most entrepreneurs, the spirit of Churchill’s message “perpetual uncertainty” can be translated into perpetual opportunity to improvise and create in order to compete in a constantly changing market.

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​Capsules, coffee bags, fulfilled e-commerce are all examples of how we, here at Masteroast, keep innovating and our new additional roasting and packing capacity should also help deliver and protect pricing through additional productivity. Our up-and-coming new generation of young enthusiastic people, four of whom now boast Q grade qualifications, confirms our commitment to innovation and support for our customers at home, Europe and beyond.
 
As always, I must thank every member of the Masteroast team for their outstanding efforts during the last year. The extensive building work and installation of the new roaster, inevitably created a few problems for both production and administration, however, I thank them all for coping so admirably. Likewise, if any customers noticed any cracks within our normally seamless service, please accept my apologies and  reassurance that as the new extension and roaster are now fully operational, our customer service in 2018 should prove to be even more supportive and smooth-running than ever.

This year we have nominated The Royal British Legion as our receiving charity in recognition of what we owe the military services of this country.
 
As ever, on behalf of the Masteroast family, I wish our customers, suppliers and all our friends in the industry and their families a happy most successful New Year. 

L. G. Mills.