Leadership

As a global company, Volcafe understands the importance of a diverse and experienced leadership team. Here you can learn about some of the people guiding Volcafe's work.

Our national operations in 20+ countries are led by our team of General Managers. You can find them in Our Coffee Network.

Trishul Mandana, CEO

Appointed Managing Director of Volcafe Ltd in 2015, Trishul has over 30 years of experience in the coffee industry.

After completing his master’s degree in Agricultural Commodities at the University of Illinois (Urbana Champaign, USA) in 1992, Trishul joined Louis Dreyfus as a grain trader in Kansas City (USA) and subsequently moved to the coffee division based in Connecticut in 1993. During his tenure with the global agricultural merchant, Trishul held several positions within their coffee division including Head of EMEA and Head of Global Physical Trading before being appointed Managing Director and member of their Senior Executive Committee.

Trishul has served as a trade representative on the board of the Global Coffee Platform, as a representative on the board of the European Coffee Federation, and as a member of the board of the Swiss Coffee Trade Association. He was also the former Chairman of the London Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE) coffee advisory group. He is currently a member of both the ICE (Arabica) and ICE – EU (Robusta) Committees.

Trishul plays a leading role in the wider coffee industry driving sustainability and campaigning for fair farmer income.

Melvin Wenger Weber, CFO

Appointed Chief Financial Officer and member of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe in 2021, Melvin brings over 25 years of experience in corporate finance.

Melvin studied Business Administration and Economics with a major in Administration at the Universidad Católica de Chile and holds a Master’s in Business Administration from the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez of Santiago, Chile.

Prior to joining Volcafe, Melvin worked for three years as Chief Financial Officer of the listed sugar entity of ED&F Man in Chile, remaining as today as a board member. He also brings 11 years of experience in senior positions gained in a maritime and port logistics businesses in the Americas.

Farah Ghazal, Global Human Resources Director

Appointed Global Human Resources Director and member of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe in 2016, Farah brings over 15 years of experience in HR and looks after our most precious resource – our people.

Farah studied Business Administration with a focus in Finance at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, and holds a Master’s in Business Administration from ESADE Business School in Barcelona, Spain.

Prior to joining Volcafe, Farah worked in the IT and not-for-profit sectors at global, regional, and local levels.

Tim Scharrer, COO and Regional Director Europe and North America

Appointed Chief Operating Officer and member of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe in 2023, Tim assumes global oversight of Volcafe’s Sustainability and Supply Chain functions. In his capacity as Regional Director Europe and North America, Tim leads our destination businesses in those regions. 

Tim brings over 30 years of experience in green coffee trading and operations management, from both coffee merchants and the roasting industry. Tim started his career with an apprenticeship as a wholesale and international trade specialist.

He went on to work in various coffee producing countries, including eight years at Volcafe in Colombia (Carcafe), and in the coffee trade in a variety of roles and markets. Prior to re-joining Volcafe, Tim was the Managing Director of SCTC (Starbucks Coffee Trading Company), where he worked for over 15 years. 

Carlos Homberger, Regional Director South and Central America

Appointed Regional Director for South and Central America in 2024, Carlos has been part of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe since 2019. Carlos oversees all our operations in Central and South America, including sustainable procurement, milling, and exporting. 

Carlos studied Business Administration and holds a Bachelor from UACA (Universidad Autónoma de Centro América, Costa Rica). Carlos started his coffee career with a traineeship at Volcafe in 1991. Moving on to positions in Costa Rica and Honduras, he was appointed Regional Director of Central America in 2019, before expanding his role to Regional Director Americas in 2022.

Michael Czerny, Regional Director Asia-Pacific and East Africa

Appointed Regional Director and member of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe in 2018, Michael brings extensive experience in coffee trading and business development in the Asia-Pacific region. In 2024, in addition to his role of managing Volcafe’s operations in Asia-Pacific, Michael took on oversight of our East Africa origin operations.

Michael holds a Master of Laws from the University of Salzburg, Austria and complemented his studies in Spain and the UK. 

Michael joined Louis Dreyfus Commodities as a management trainee in 2000 and worked across various commodity business units, setting up and leading their Asian Coffee operations from 2007 prior to joining Volcafe.

Chris Thompson, Head of Proprietary Trading

Appointed Head of Proprietary Trading in 2019 and member of the Senior Leadership Team of Volcafe, Chris brings over 30 years of commodity trading experience in sugar, cocoa, and base metals as well as coffee. He is responsible for the trading of our derivatives book with additional oversite of the company’s overall coffee hedging strategies.

Chris holds a Bachelor of Science in Managerial and Administrative Studies from the University of Aston, United Kingdom. He is a respected leader in the trading community, having worked for Olam, Noble, Louis Dreyfus and Cargill before joining the ED&F Man group, based in London.

Raphaelle Peinado, Global Sustainability Director

Appointed Global Sustainability Director in 2024, Raphaelle oversees Volcafe’s sustainability strategy across the world. She brings over 12 years of experience in sustainability of tropical agricultural commodities, across Latin America and Africa.

Raphaelle holds a bachelor's degree in political science and Spanish literature from McGill University and a master's degree in international development from the London School of Economics.

Prior to joining Volcafe, Raphaelle oversaw the sustainability department in Sucden's cocoa department for over seven years and held the position of Sustainability Manager at Transmar Group for over four years.

Hannah Rizki, Global Head of Research

Appointed Global Head of Coffee Research in 2017, Hannah brings over 15 years of experience within global trade disputes, commodity derivatives and statistical consulting. She leads the Coffee Research department – from market price discovery to weather patterns and crop predictions.

Hannah holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Statistics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and a Master of Science in Applied Statistics and Stochastics Modelling from the University of London.

Hannah joined ED&F Man in 2011 as an analyst in the M&A department and later moved to mediating on international trade disputes with a focus on EU sugar policy, before moving to the coffee division in 2017.