Now Accepting Applications

The Neumann Kaffee Gruppe Partnership to Advance Coffee Equity (NKG PACE) is now accepting applications. The window will remain open through 5 p.m. ET August 31, and in late October, we’ll announce the names of the three inaugural NKG PACE Partners.

The first program cycle will begin January 2022, with Partners placed in three of the four Neumann Gruppe USA (NGUS) offices, located in Hoboken, Houston, San Diego and Seattle.

You can learn all about the program on this site’s main pages. But the key details are that NKG PACE is open to Black Americans; it’s a one-year, Quality Control–focused training program that comes with a salary, healthcare and benefits; and it’s designed to welcome greater diversity into the U.S. coffee industry by equipping participants to take on highly skilled roles.  

Further, we’re developing a curriculum with help from numerous respected organizations and individuals, including the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI). We believe that, upon completion of the program, Partners will be prepared to pass the Q Grader exam, if they choose to take it.

WELCOMING PARTNERS

Like so many aspects of the program, much thought and consideration went into how we address the participants. We ultimately chose Partners because it’s not gendered and it’s not a title steeped in outdated traditions. Most of all, we chose it because — like the name of the program — it suggests the mutual effort and collaboration that we hope will define NKG PACE. The success and growth of all involved will come thanks to our work together — to our shared good will and good intentions — starting day one.

Throughout the many months of building NKG PACE, a repeated mantra was the African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” This was especially a touchstone as the idea for the program bloomed from the growing relationship between NKG and the Coffee Coalition for Racial Equity (CCRE).

We know this isn’t a large program, by many measures. But thanks to the good, shared work of our colleagues, our friends, our collaborators and, soon, our Partners, we’re hopeful about just how far its impact will travel.