What is the use of coffee cooperatives? why do some small producing areas have cooperative flavor units?

Around the world, you will find that cooperatives are producing, processing and selling coffee. But what is a coffee cooperative? How does it work? How do farmers have a traceable single origin when they cooperate?

To find out the answers to these questions and more information, I interviewed Jos é Marcos RafaelMagalh ã es, president of the Minasul cooperative, and some of his agricultural members. Minasul has more than 6000 members, covering four of the six regions in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, which is the world's largest coffee producer.

What is a coffee cooperative?

The clue is the name. Coffee cooperatives are a group of coffee producers who can work together to make better use of resources, better marketing and business opportunities, and provide training.

Members usually pay a fee and then reinvest it in the coffee community, based on the logic that the merged money can achieve more than spending alone. In addition, many large cooperatives have full-time staff engaged in management, marketing, education, research and other work.

"the cooperative is a non-profit organization." Jose Marcos (Jose é Marcos) told me. "participation is voluntary and our job is to facilitate members' access to the means of production or supply."

He continued: "We understand not only chemical fertilizers and pesticides as & # 39; supplies & # 39; but also credit, information and technology as & # 39; supplies & # 39; We must strive to provide input, logistics and, of course, to deal with market problems and marketing for producers. "

What does a coffee cooperative offer to producers?

Let's take a look at the significance of "promoting access to the means of production" to producers. Andreia Nogueira Foresti has been a member of the Minasul Cooperative for over 35 years. She considers herself a medium-sized farmer on her farm Fazenda do Lobo, which is located in Tr ê sCora Portugal es, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

"the purpose of Minasul is to market the products and services of cooperative members on more favorable terms than we can get," she explained. They provide services for us. " "We have a technical department, a support team, an agronomist. There are agricultural supply stores there. There is a credit bank that can provide us with better interest rate financing. Therefore, we have received full support there. "

In fact, cooperatives may carry out many projects, including, but not limited to:

1. Provide materials such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers

two。 Provide technical assistance

3. Provide loans at lower interest rates than banks

4. Buy members' crops and sell them

5. Contact its members directly with the buyer

6. Promote certification

7. Educational assistance

8. Business advice and training

Different farms, different needs.

In addition, cooperatives may find that different members need different types of support. Cooperatives should take this into account when formulating procedures.

Jose Marcos told me, "Cooperatives want to work side by side with producers and understand the expectations of our members." We study them; we divide them into small, medium and large. They all have the same importance, but have different needs. Therefore, we try to meet each type of demand. "

He explained that a large producer may need a harvester at a cost of $300000, while a smaller producer may need a $300000 mozinha, a handheld harvester that shakes branches with plastic "hands" to knock down loose ripe cherries. Minasul's responsibility is to make sure they can support both manufacturers.

However, this is not just the size of the property. Producers may have different needs according to their climate. Different topography may limit what kind of machinery to use. They may need educational programs related to coffee processing or business management, or they may need to educate their children. The list of requirements is long and varied.

Why not operate independently?

Of course, coffee producers do not have to cooperate with cooperatives. They can work independently with coffee traders, exporters, certification programs, etc. This can take many forms, from selling to local agents to trading directly with roasters. So what do producers need to think about?

First of all, not all producers have the resources to work independently. Smaller farmers may not be able to produce enough to attract exporters and roasters, forcing them to sell premium coffee to middlemen at commodity prices. They may also lack the resources to market themselves by setting up social media accounts, taking the time to meet potential clients and participating in coffee events around the world.

On the other hand, producers may want to be different or develop direct trade relationships. It is worth noting that the ability to perform this operation may vary depending on the cooperative. My interviewees explained that at Minasul, cooperatives will connect producers of premium coffee with interested third-wave roasters so that producers and roasters can start their own direct trade relationships. In this way, coffee can still be traced back to a single source. However, in smaller cooperatives, producers' crops can be processed and sold together. In terms of its nature, cooperatives are concerned with groups rather than individuals.

Another point worth considering is profit margins. As Jose Marcos told me, a cooperative should be a non-profit organization. He stressed: "the cooperative focuses on the well-being of producers." "its goal is the development of producers. This means that cooperatives can perform well only if the producers perform well. "

This is why cooperatives often sell fertilizers and supplies to their members at lower prices, provide low-interest loans, and so on. They can buy products in bulk and sell them only for the purpose of paying the operating costs of the cooperative, not for profit.

However, other organizations may have an obligation to profit shareholders. Moreover, since independent producers are usually smaller than cooperatives, the cost of each transaction may be higher. This is because the price paid needs to cover not only the cost of materials (and a certain degree of profit), but also administrative costs.

Of course, not all co-operatives are the same. But in general, the exact meaning of a coffee cooperative is that producers cooperate to improve the quality of their coffee and strengthen their position in the supply chain.

Coffee cultivation is a challenging industry-with global warming and fluctuations in coffee prices, it is unlikely to become easy in the short term. Cooperatives work together to overcome these difficulties and provide support to their members through the establishment of infrastructure the provision of training and financing and the facilitation of direct trade in roasters or exporters.