Coffee Glossary · Trade
FOB (Free On Board)
The most common green-coffee Incoterm: the seller's price covers everything up to and including loading the container aboard the vessel at the named origin port — inland transport, export documentation, port handling — after which cost and risk pass to the buyer, who arranges ocean freight and insurance. FOB pricing makes origins comparable (it strips out destination freight differences) and is the basis on which differentials against futures markets are quoted. For Laos, FOB contracts name Laem Chabang, Thailand — the landlocked origin's ocean gateway.
Related terms
Incoterms (FOB, CIF, CFR, EXW, DDP)
The ICC's standardized trade terms defining exactly where seller responsibility ends and buyer responsibility…
Differentials (Price Basis)
How most coffee is priced: as a premium or discount ('differential') against the futures markets — New York's…
Bill of Lading (B/L)
The ocean shipment's master document, issued by the carrier: simultaneously a receipt for the cargo, evidence…
Cash Against Documents (CAD)
A documentary collection payment method lighter than a letter of credit: the exporter ships, then routes the…
Crop Year / Fresh Crop / Past Crop
Coffee's vintage system: each origin's harvest defines its crop year (Laos: roughly October–September), and…
Cup of Excellence (CoE)
The most prestigious origin-country coffee competition: national juries winnow hundreds of farm entries…
Reading up before buying? Volcana Coffee exports SGS-inspected specialty Arabica and Fine Robusta from the Bolaven Plateau, Laos — and we're happy to walk new importers through every term on a real offer sheet.
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