SPOTLIGHT

Relentlessly Pursuing Quality | Episode 210

By Dan Bolton

Since its establishment six years ago, the European Speciality Tea Association (ESTA) has implemented training programs leading to the certification of tea and coffee professionals, organized competitions to enhance the capabilities of tea baristas, and developed educational programs for consumers. The association has also organized tours to the tea lands and financed research and development to encourage innovation in tea.

ESTA’s outgoing executive director, David Veal, joins the Tea Biz podcast to discuss the association’s achievements, growth to 350 members, and future ambitions.

BIO: David was named executive director in May 2019. Before that, he was executive director of the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) from 2011 to 2018, when SCAE merged with its American counterpart to become the Specialty Coffee Association. David’s beverage career began in 1983 when he joined Automatic Catering Supplies (ACS) as Regional Manager for the North of England. At ACS, he played a pivotal role in introducing specialty coffee brands like Douwe Egberts to the UK market.

David officially leaves the post as executive director on March 31 but promises to “hang around for a bit to help with succession and smooth things over.”

Listen to the interview  
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