Honduras small-scale Coffee Cooperation Organization Coffee Sustainable Agriculture Organic Coffee processing

As we all know, many coffee growing areas unite individual farmers in the form of cooperatives to create conditions for coffee cultivation on a small scale. This kind of coffee planting model is actually very popular in Central and South America. Guatemalan coffee and Costa Rican coffee are also used. Here in front street, we will briefly introduce the two Honduran coffee consortia.

Cafe Org á nico Marcala (COMSA) was established in December 2001 with the vision of creating new alternative development opportunities for small-scale coffee farmers in the region. The organization initially brought together 69 small farmers from Lenca who were interested in selling their coffee collectively under the umbrella of rural credit cooperatives.

At that time, the main production systems in the region used traditional (chemical) practices and sold to local giants, often at prices that could not even cover their production costs. One of the main founding goals of COMSA is to seek and promote new ways of thinking-whether in production, from traditional production to organic production, and from commercial buyers to professional buyers in the market. Sell their coffee collectively under umbrellas. With the support of CEDECO, COMSA employees and members learned new and innovative practices to transform their land into integrated organic farms. They are working hard to promote soil and water conservation and the protection of local plants and wildlife. At the same time, members are beginning to see an increase in coffee production, better family relationships and the rapid growth of COMSA membership.

With their initial success, members are more and more willing to try innovative organic practices.

To ensure optimal quality control, COMSA now manages its own dry and wet processing plants and is organically certified by Biolatina and exported according to FLO, SPP, Denominaci ó n de Origen Marcala (DOP) and UTZ.

The harvest takes place from December to February of the following year, when the sun is soft and indirectly penetrates the farm because there is plenty of shade and the days are short and cool. Hand-picked, carefully selected fruits that have reached the best maturity, cherries with the freshest appearance, solid color and bright color. This meticulous cherry selection requires picking at least three of the same plants to produce quality coffee.

After harvest, the fruit is processed by wet processing, the coffee is de-pulped, and then fermented in a tank for more than 36 hours. Any by-products of this process, such as pulp, are reintegrated into the farm soil. Finally, the coffee is dried in the sun during a long period of drying.

In Honduras, TechnoServe is helping coffee farmers like Luis Olvera improve their coffee and join local producer organizations. By doing so, they can connect to better markets and sell their coffee directly to exporters in bulk, resulting in better prices and better livelihoods. Coffee is a way of life in El Capiro, a remote community in the mountains of northern Honduras. Farmers here have been producing coffee for generations, but poor planting technology, limited quality control and low prices make it difficult for them to make a living. The situation is so bleak that some farmers are considering selling the farms they have owned for decades. In 2013, TechnoServe began passing a sustainable agricultural transformation program funded by the United States Department of Agriculture. (MAS+ in Spanish) works with more than 5000 coffee farmers in Honduras. At the time, Lewis and his neighbors were part of the La Inmensa Jornada producer organization-but they still sold coffee at low prices through middlemen or second-tier organizations. TechnoServe also works with private coffee exporters to integrate smallholder farmers into agricultural supply chains and market systems through training, financial and technical assistance. This unique approach combines concerns about quality and sustainability, bringing benefits to farmers and their communities.