Welcome back to The Sprudge Twenty interview series! The Sprudge Twenty is an annual initiative by Sprudge presented in partnership with Pacific Barista Series that honors and amplifies 20 extraordinary individuals in teh global specialty coffee community. You can view this year’s Sprudge 20 honorees here, and catch up on all our interviews to date.
Vava Angwenyi is a Kenyan social entrepreneur, sustainable farming advocate, and the founder of Vava Coffee. Established in 2009, her company is a social enterprise that focuses on creating sustainable livelihoods for smallholder coffee farmers. Her key initiatives and impact focus on decolonizing empowerment, ensuring farmers—particularly women and youth—are not dependent on beneficiaries but instead take ownership of their crops and stories. She is a co-founder of the group Gente del Futuro, which amplifies the voices of youth in coffee, providing economic empowerment and cross-cultural training between producers in Tanzania, Kenya, and Colombia. She is the author of the book Coffee Milk Blood, which explores the personal stories and complex power dynamics within the coffee industry through a visual and narrative lens. And she’s established La Dulce Toro, a specialty coffee school and cafe located in Lamu, Kenya, further promoting local coffee education and consumption.
Nominated by Stephanie Haughey
How many years total have you worked in the coffee industry?
17
What was your first coffee job?
I ran Vava’s Coffee Lounge at Barclays Plaza in Nairobi, starting in 2009.
Did you experience a life-changing moment of coffee revelation early in your career?
Early on, I began collecting data directly from coffee producers across Kenya to understand their challenges and how my organization could create meaningful impact. What struck me most was how open producers were to sharing their experiences and seeking solutions. It completely changed how I thought about coffee and where value really begins.
Is there a person or persons who served as your mentor early in your coffee career? How did they impact you?
I didn’t have one traditional mentor early in my career. A lot of my mentorship came through books, online talks, accelerator programs, and studying entrepreneurs I admired from afar.
People like Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield Farm, Mark Cuban, and Anita Roddick of The Body Shop really influenced me. I was drawn to entrepreneurs who built businesses around strong values and weren’t afraid to challenge conventional thinking. Their stories gave me perspective and motivation on the difficult days, and helped me believe that it was possible to build something meaningful while creating a viable business.
What is your current role in coffee?
I work at the intersection of coffee, sustainability, and systems change, with a focus on ethical value chains, local ownership, and accountability.
I’m the founder of Vava Coffee and Ocean Love Coffee, co-founder of Gente Del Futuro, and author of Coffee Milk Blood. I’m also a CQI-certified Q Grader and served on the Specialty Coffee Association Board from 2019, including on its Finance and Sustainability Committees.
Much of my work has focused on challenging the power structures that shape coffee and creating more space for African producers, professionals, women, and young people to lead. Today, I’m particularly interested in building partnerships based on transparency and shared risk, mentoring the next generation, and helping tell more honest and nuanced stories about coffee and Africa.
What facet of the coffee industry has changed the most during your career?
I’ve seen more openness from some roasters to building genuine relationships with producers and representing their work more responsibly. Producers have also become increasingly willing to experiment with processing and quality.
What still surprises you today about coffee, or gives you joy?
The people. After all these years, I’m still surprised by how much coffee can connect people across cultures, countries, and completely different circumstances.
And I still get enormous joy when a producer tells me they’re happy with what we paid for their coffee and what that purchase means for their family.
What’s something about the coffee industry you’d most like to see change?
I want to see far more African leadership in African coffee companies.
Too many multinational companies operating in producer countries still reserve senior decision making roles for expatriates, despite there being highly qualified local professionals capable of leading these organizations. If coffee is serious about equity, ownership and leadership need to follow the value chain.
What is your most cherished coffee memory?
A producer telling me they were happy with what we paid for their coffee and knowing that the purchase made a tangible difference in their everyday life.
Do you make coffee at home? If so, tell us how you brew!
Absolutely. Pour-over or AeroPress most days.
What is your favorite song/music to brew coffee to?
Anything Swahili, especially Mbosso. I’ve also been listening to Fally Ipupa, Nadia Mukami, and Bien.
Current favorites include “Mimi Ni Nani” by Mbosso, “Mayday” by Fally Ipupa, and “Nikupende” by Nadia Mukami and Bien.
What is your idea of coffee happiness?
Drinking a delicious coffee from a producer I know and have worked with and knowing they’re happy too.
If you could drink coffee with anyone, living or dead, who would it be and why?
Ibrahim Traoré and Anthony Bourdain.
Traoré because I like his policies so far and I’d want to understand his vision for Africa’s future. Bourdain because he had a rare ability to use food and travel to tell complicated human stories with curiosity and honesty. I think that would be one fascinating conversation.
What’s one piece of advice you would give someone getting their start in the coffee industry today?
Have more than one skill to offer. Be authentic, do the work, stay curious, and never stop learning especially about producers, how they work, and what matters to them.
And if you’re entering coffee retail, be properly capitalized. Learn how to tell dignified stories about the producers from the retail end and honor the producer appropriately.
The Sprudge Twenty feature series is proudly presented by Pacific Barista Series.
