Auction Agreement for Best of Taiwan
Payment and Shipping Requirements for Taiwan
Cup of Excellence Pilot Internet Auction
The 2023 Cup of Excellence Internet Auction is sponsored by The Alliance for Coffee Excellence,
Inc.P (ACE) and Coffee Industrial Alliance of Taiwan (CIAT). If assistance is required immediately
following the auction please contact gary@cupofexcellence.org, kathia@cupofexcellence.org or
carlos@cupofexcellence.org
Acceptance of Terms and Conditions
Your participation in this auction indicates your review and agreePment to the following terms.
Should you purchase any Cup of Excellence coffee at this auction you agree to the terms and
conditions of purchase and shipping included in this agreement. Any buyer of any Cup of
Excellence coffee through the auction or through a secondary channel agrees to the use and
restrictions of the Cup of Excellence® mark. Any misuse of this mark may be cause for legal
proceedings. It is the responsibility of the bidder to determine quality and appropriate value.
Bidders should assess the value of each coffee based on quality in the cup and its
appropriateness for their company. Farm information is for educational purposes only but can
be used to help sell the winning coffees.
Auction Opening Date and Times
Auction will open for bidding on August 24th at 9:00AM (New York)
Your opening time may vary- please check based on 9:00AM EDT (New York)
The Auction will open for bidding at
● 06:00 (Los Angeles)
● 09:00 (New York)
● 14:00 (London)
● 15:00 (UTC Oslo/Amsterdam)
● 16:00 (Moscow)
● 17:00 (Dubai)
● 21:00 (Hong Kong)
● 22:00 (Tokyo/Seoul)
● 23:00 (Melbourne/Sydney)
Coffee Lots
The 20 coffee lots being offered for sale through this internet auction were designated Cup of
Excellence (COE) winners at the 2023 Taiwan competition. The designated coffees were blindly
cupped through the following process:
National stage: July 3rd – June 6th with the 8 National Judges at New Taipei City, with John Thompson as the head judge.
International stage: July 10th – July 13st with the 19 International Judges at New Taipei City, with
John Thompson as the head judge.
No other coffee can be sold using this designation. Online bidding for any Cup of Excellence lots
is only available through this website. Each lot is separate and distinct. The top 3 lost scoring
90+ points have already been separated into 2 distinct lots labeled A and B. Samples have been
made available.
Auction Pricing
Pricing for the lots are figured in USD dollars and cents per pound. A minimum opening price of:
$22.00/lb for coffee with a score between 87+. For each lot has been set by Coffee Industrial
Alliance of Taiwan (CIAT) as representative of the winning farmers. All opening bids on all lots
must be $22.00 USD or any amount greater. Incremental bids must be $.50 (fifty cents) per
pound or any amount greater than $.50 (fifty cents) per pound.
Bidding, Opening and Closing
All lots will open together with the same minimum price. The bidding page will indicate “OPEN”
until all lots have at least one bid after which a 3-minute countdown clock will begin. A bidder
may place multiple or single bids on any or all lots during the open auction or during the
3-minute countdown clock. Each bid on any lot resets the clock to 3 minutes. A clock on the
bidding page will indicate the time remaining for the auction. Once there are no more bids on
any lot during the 3-minute time window the auction and all lots will close for bidding. A
PENDING notification does not end the auction even though bidding may cease. No bid is final
until the FINISHED notification appears. Once the auction software indicates FINISHED the
highest bid wins the lot and all lots are closed for any additional bidding. At the conclusion of
the auction, the buyer for the lot and the person responsible for payment and for shipping
coordination will be the bidder placing the highest bid or auto bid for that lot. Should there be
two identical auto bids the first auto bid placed wins the lot.
Proxy and Auto Bids
An auto-bid or proxy feature is available to any bidder wishing to allow the software to place
their next highest bid. A bidder can place a high bid on any coffee lot using the auto-bid
function. The software will then place a fifty cent higher bid above a competitive bid until the
auto bid price is reached. The software will not place any higher auto-bid amount unless there is
a competitive bid for that lot. Each Bidder will be able to view the current high bid for a Lot at
any time during the Auction. Individual bids once accepted by the auction software, may not be
revoked or withdrawn. However, you may cancel an auto-bid to prevent the system from
placing further bids on your behalf.
Packing
All Cup of Excellence coffees are vacuum packed in cartons each containing 3 (three) 5kg bags.
Bidding calculations are based on actual pounds after milling and packing the coffees. The
number of 15kg boxes as well as the weight in pounds will be shown.
Communication During and After Auction
Each Bidder will log in using his/her confidential password. All bids will be identified during the
auction with a bidding number not a company name. During the auction the software will
communicate any outbids, any auction issues, notifications or final successful bids using the
email address registered for that bidder. It is the bidder’s responsibility to ensure that the
registered email is correct. Contact ACE staff for verification if uncertain.
Posting the Results
30 minutes or earlier after the end of the auction successful bidders will be identified by their
company names. The auction results will be posted on the ACE website. Buying group members
and their company identification is the responsibility of the actual bidder. Buyers can also be
added at a later date.
To modify & add names of winning bidders on the ACE website please email
carlos@cupofexcellence.org once the auction has concluded.
Payment and Shipping Requirements for
Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot Internet Auction
The 2023 Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot Internet Auction is sponsored by The Alliance for Coffee Excellence,
Inc. (ACE) and the Coffee Industrial Alliance of Taiwan (CIAT). If assistance is required immediately
following the auction please contact erwin@cupofexcellence.org, kathia@cupofexcellence.org or
carlos@cupofexcellence.org.
Acceptance of Terms and Conditions
Your participation in this auction indicates your review and agreement to the following terms. Should you
purchase any Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot coffee at this auction you agree to the terms and conditions of
purchase and shipping included in this agreement. Any buyer of any Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot coffee
through the auction or through a secondary channel agrees to the use and restrictions of the Cup of
Excellence® mark. Any misuse of this mark may be cause for legal proceedings. It is the responsibility of
the bidder to determine quality and appropriate value. Bidders should assess the value of each coffee
based on the quality in the cup and its appropriateness for their company. Farm information is for
educational purposes only but can be used to help sell the winning coffees.
Coffee Lots
The 20 coffee lots being offered for sale through this internet auction were designated Best of Taiwan
(COE) Pilot winners at the 2023 competition. The designated coffees were blindly cupped through the
following process:
National stage: July 3rd – June 6th with the 8 National Judges at New Taipei City, with John Thompson as
the head judge.
International stage: July 10th – July 13st with the 19 International Judges at New Taipei City, with John
Thompson as the head judge.
No other coffee can be sold using this designation. Online bidding for any Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot lots
is only available through this website. Each lot is separate and distinct.
Packing Information
The Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot coffees are vacuum packed in cartons each containing 3 (three) 5kg bags.
Bidding calculations are based on actual pounds after milling and packing the coffees. The number of 30kg
boxes as well as the weight in pounds will be shown. A broken seal on any vacuum package does not
automatically warrant a claim or indicate a quality change.
Financial Responsibility and Group Bidding
The individual bidder placing the highest bid at the close of the auction is responsible for the financial
payment to the exporter of the entire lot. Individual bids once accepted by the auction software, may not
be revoked or withdrawn. The exporter may approve multiple payments and multiple shipping
instructions for a single lot but only if the successful bidder requests the approval and submits all of the
shipping instructions within 7 days of the auction. If the exporter or the country partner denies the
request for any reason the bidder will be held liable for the entire payment regardless of group purchase.
If a lot is split and sent to more than one destination the buyer will be responsible for any additional costs
or fees associated with that export.
In a situation where the farmer is responsible for the payment of the transport, it is expected the winning
bidder will designate a shipping method that will not substantially affect the costs the farmer is charged
within the origin country to deliver the coffee to the shipping facility such as but not limited to: port,
airport, third party designated exporter. The management of the Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot program has
the right to seek and provide the winning bidder fair shipping options considered equative for the selling
and buying parties.
The responsibilities of the lead bidder of a buyer group are to review, approve and socialize all terms and
conditions with each member of their buying group. This bidder agreement is only sent to those
registered to bid in the auction, if the members of your buying group are not registered for the auction
the lead bidder is required to share the agreement to get each member’s approval. It is required that the
lead bidder in the auction to collaborate with the exporter facilitating communication and expediting the
payment process if any setbacks are encountered regarding payment or complications in communicating
with other buyers from the group.
If a lot is split between several buyers and sent to more than one destination, all additional buyers of said
lot will be charged with an extra fee per shipment to cover the additional administrative costs associated
with the export depending on the transport mode:
Air cargo: $50.00 USD
Sea freight: $65.00 USD
Payment Requirements
Full payment of the lot(s)and the packing fee(s) is required prior to shipment unless other requests are
made in writing and approved in advance. Cash against documents must also be approved in advance of
the auction. Prepayment of the lot is required if moved to another exporter to be shipped. Shipment,
quality, and delivery responsibility will revert to the new exporter.
Full payment is due 30 (thirty) days after the close of the auction regardless of ship date or method. A
minimum 2% monthly late fee may be charged for any lots not paid within 30 days.
All the fees or expenses generate in the bank of the buyer for making the transaction of payment have to
be paid by the buyer.
Shipping Requirements
Shipping instructions are to be sent to the exporter within 7 (seven) days of the close of the auction by
the successful bidder or the bidder’s designated importer. Bidders can nominate any importer. A COE
cooperating importer is recommended. These can be found on the ACE website at
www.allianceforcoffeeexcellence.org
All Lots must be shipped within 45 days of the auction. No claim may be made to the exporter, farmer,
Alliance for Coffee Excellence, or Coffee Industrial Alliance of Taiwan (CIAT). on any COE lot shipped after
45 days. COE lots for Taiwan are shipped, terms1 FOT for Sea shipping FCA for Air shipping, net weight
and applicable fees- airfreight is available at an extra cost and can be coordinated by the exporter. Lots
will be shipped as per the instructions and at the cost of the successful bidder. Any changes that result in
extra fees will be paid by the buyer.
THE NOMINATED EXPORTER
Exporter Name: Qahwah Co., Ltd.
Exporter Address: 4Fl. No. 225, Section 3, Beixin Rd. Xindian Dist. New Taipei City, Taiwan
COE Coffee Warehouse Address: 4Fl. No. 225, Section 3, Beixin Rd. Xindian Dist. New Taipei City, Taiwan
Exporter Contact Name: Leo Liu
Exporter Phone numbers: 886-916500525
Exporter Email Address: leoliu@tcl.coffee, coe@tcl.coffee
Copy to: gary@cupofexcellence.org, kathia@cupofexcellence.org, gabriela@cupofexcellence.org,
Box Dimensions: L 42cm – W 28.5 cm – H 37cm .
All buyers must contact the exporter, coordinators and ACE within 7 days of the close of the auction.
Winning farmers will cover normal costs occurring from warehouse to the exporter. Any additional costs
and/or special requests will be charged to buyers based on FCA terms for air freight and FOT terms for sea
freight.
Modification of this Agreement
The Management of the Best of Taiwan (COE) Pilot program have the right to modify this Agreement and
any policies affecting the website. Any modification is effective immediately upon posting to the website
or distribution via electronic mail. Your continued use of the auction or website following the notice of
any modification shall be deemed your acceptance of the modification(s).
Indemnification, Claims and Disclaimer
Use of this internet auction and ACE website is at the bidder’s own risk. Bidders agrees not to hold the
Alliance for Coffee Excellence, Taiwan the provider of software, internet services or telecommunications
companies for any consequential, incidental and/or liquidated damages if any that may result from or is
claimed to result from, the bidder’s participation in the auction.
The winning coffees have been selected and scored in blind cuppings. The winning farm and the specific
coffee lot information is submitted by each farmer and is not known to the public until the winning coffees
have been disclosed following the international stage cuppings held by the chosen panel. ACE assumes
the farm information is correct and up to date but is not responsible should some information change
before or after the auction. Bidders should assess the value of each coffee based on quality in the cup
and its appropriateness for their company. Farm information is for educational purposes only but can be
used to help sell the winning coffees. All quality claims must be made within 15 days of delivery as per the
Green Coffee Association of NYC ruling but no claim can be made on any coffees shipped more than 45
days after the close of the auction. Should a claim arise, a neutral arbitration panel will be assembled to
assess the claim. Bidding at this auction represents a contract to purchase the coffee. Should a buyer
default on payment legal remedies Coffee Industrial Alliance of Taiwan (CIAT). will be undertaken.
For any quality claims, ACE must be contacted directly before any public statements/ posts/ social media
articles or any related matters are published to a general audience. A resolution will be amicably sought
after between ACE, in-country partner, buyer, and exporter. Any public statements/ posts/ social media
articles or any other general audience published before contacting ACE will result in a void quality claim
process. ACE reserves the right to have the final
resolution in any quality claim.
Mainland China Exportation
If you bid in Taiwan COE 2023 auction, please beware that the exporter is don’t have the code provided
for the General Customs Administration of the PRC (GACC). For that reason, Taiwan Exporter cannot
export lots to mainland China.
Chinese bidders are allowed to bid during the auction. The winners will have to provide an alternative
address that doesn't require the GACC Code to ship the coffee after the auction. Please be aware that if
you decide to provide an alternative address, ACE and the Taiwan exporter will not be responsible for any
delay in customs, loss of cargo, extra cost, or problems in the logistics. The buyers will have to make a
decision based on your own risk and responsibility.