This Saturday, Bon Appetit will take 10 students on a field trip to tour Zingerman’s Coffee Roastery in Ann Arbor.
Students will have the opportunity to learn how Zingerman’s — the coffee supplier for A.J.’s coffee — sources their beans and how the roasting process works in general.
The trip is in collaboration with the Roots Project, which seeks to inform students on being more mindful of where their food comes from.
“We’re working with the Roots Project to do informative farm and artisan visits, because learning about where your food comes from is an important part of changing your habits with regards to food, and the way you think about the food system,” said Bon Appetit Marketing Coordinator William Persson ‘17. “Learning how these things are made or grown can help change the way you think about them.”
Students can look forward to touring Zingerman’s roasting area, candy shop, creamery, and bakery. The trip is open to all students, but is obviously marketed to those who enjoy the occasional cup of joe.
“It’s very interesting to learn about all of the work that goes into a single cup of coffee,” Persson said.
According to Bon Appetit Marketing Assistant Danielle Lee, learning about the mechanics behind coffee is very important — an opportunity the trip provides.
“When you know the process that goes into it — how they source it, how they meet the farmers — it’s really an intensive process,” Lee said. “People think like, ‘Oh, you just sign a contract and you get the beans.’ No, to get good sourcing you also have to form good partnerships with farmers, and the effort that goes into that makes the cup more human and more connected.”
Students interested in attending the field trip can RSVP through the SAB Newsletter, or through A.J.’s or Bon Appetit’s Instagrams. Students will meet at the Lane parking lot at 10:30 a.m. Saturday for the 12 p.m. tour at Zingerman’s.