Serving People Serving Coffee Since 2005
Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/804825
was awarded the Manuel Mejia award from the FNC. That was a magical trip with numerous fond memories, as many of Peerless' top Colombian and international partners attended the ceremony out of respect for him. My father was awarded the medal of honor for all his work to improve the lives of Colombian farmers. I was so proud. Fast forward to 2016, which sadly is the year I lost my father. It's also the year I received an invitation from one of our top suppliers, Arnoldo Leiva of the Coffee Source, to join him on a visit to one of Peerless' producer co-ops in Huila. I relished the idea of going back, particularly since this would represent a continuation of what my father helped build many years ago. Colombia is an amazing coffee producer for many reasons. I still remember from my fi rst cupping at the Federation offi ces in Bogotá years ago, learning that Colombia is able to provide freshly harvest- ed and milled coffees year-round due to its proximity to the equator. While Colombia has many departments that produce great coffee, Peerless focuses on two: Huila and Nariño. While we source from both, the largest supplier to us is Huila. Subtle fl oral notes, lemony bursts, bright cane sweetness, and an undeniable smoothness are the common attributes we love so much about coffees from Huila—and we're not the only ones. In the past six years, every single major coffee exporter has opened an offi ce in Huila. Arnoldo and I met up in Bogotá and immediately fl ew to Neiva, the capital of Huila. Out of the 1.3 million people who live in Huila, roughly 450,000 are directly involved in the growing or milling of coffee. There are 37 municipalities in Huila, and 35 grow coffee. Our fi rst stop was Cadefi huila, which is one of two co-ops in Huila. We tagged along with Steven Diaz, who heads up quality control for Expocafe, which is the export arm for the co-ops in Colombia. We source from Cadefi huila due to the strong, consistent quality we have seen with our deliveries over the past several years. Great quality as per spec is wonderful, but consistent deliveries of great quality as per spec is something special. The co-op has member farms north and south of Huila. The crazy thing is that north and south crop times are different. Colombia has two crops: main and mitaca, or secondary crop. In the north, the mitaca harvest was ending while the main crop was just about to begin in the south. While I was there, the fi elds in south Huila were bursting with cherries. There was chatter that farmers would have trouble fi nding enough labor since the crop was so large. For reference, 60 percent of Huila's total crop comes from the south, while 40 percent comes from the north. We spent a morning with the general manager, Saul Sanmiguel, and learned the co-op provides members with free school supplies, free cervical and prostate testing, university scholarships (950 scholarships to date), medical emergency funds, funeral funds, and a lot of crop education. Twelve staff agronomists are available to advise members, and lines of communication are constantly alive via cell phone. I was amazed to learn that the cost to join the co-op is roughly $250 USD, which is held in an escrow account when paid. If the farmer chooses to leave the co-op, that money is returned to them. While this seems extremely reasonable and the added value the co- op brings is impressive, many farmers choose not to join. They prefer to stay independent and choose who purchases their coffee. There are three things to keep in mind when thinking about Colombia's farmers: The farmer profi le in Colombia is typically small landholders who average 1.6 hectares per farm, or slightly under 4 The team triumphantly arrives at the worldwide headquarters for Cadefi huila Co- op. This co-op has had an enormous social impact on the local coff ee community. 52 barista magazine