Wild Nomad Elephant Coffee
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Wild Nomad Elephant Coffee was created as a way to help keep the jungle standing and bring Asian elephants back home to live free-roaming in the forests of Northern Thailand. Coffee became the perfect way to protect the jungle, create a path for elephants to return home, and work with farmers as true partners. Wild Nomad works directly with more than 70 Karen farming families who grow Arabica beneath the mature jungle canopy, without synthetic inputs, creating an economic alternative to clearing the forest for crops like corn. Wild Nomad buys the coffee directly from its farming partners in Thailand, imports it to Portland, and small-batch roasts it locally. That direct connection keeps the farmers, the forest, and the elephants that depend on that habitat at the heart of every decision. Wild Nomad is a Portland-based, woman- and LGBTQ+-owned roaster built around one simple idea: coffee can help bring elephants home.
Our Story
Wild Nomad was founded by Jessie and Yo. Jessie grew up on a farm outside Damascus, Oregon, and first walked alongside Asian elephants in their natural forest habitat in Northern Thailand in January 2019. Yo was born and raised in the Chiang Mai highlands, where his grandfather owned six elephants and where he spent nearly thirty years guiding visitors through Northern Thailand. Yo and his wife Bee began planting coffee beneath the jungle canopy in 2020, and today they coordinate the harvest with more than 70 Karen farming families, managing the farm and the community relationships at the heart of Wild Nomad.
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