Specialty Grade, Fairly Traded, Organic Colombian Coffee.
About our Coffee Farmers:
Aurora Izquierdo was one of the first women of her generation to leave the indigenous Arhuaco community of Santa Marta in pursuit of a higher education.While studying agricultural engineering at Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Aurora considered how to turn coffee into a source of value for the indigenous farming communities of La Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and Serranía del Perijá. Her goals were to address cultural recognition, food scarcity, a poor education system and indigenous and rural economic crises—while also considering the preservation of forests, rivers and fauna.After graduating, she returned to her community and created a sustainable agriculture program that has since dramatically improved the quality of life in the area.
The Arhuaco PeopleThe Arhuaco community of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is one of four descendants (along with the Koguis, Kankuamos and Wiwas) of the Tayrona people. All four groups share a belief system that focuses on protecting the earth — which is central to sustaining all life — and maintaining a harmony between humans and nature.
About ANEI The area in which ANEI operates is made up of approximately 30,000 Arhuacos located between the departments of Cesar and Magdalena, and the association includes 700-plus coffee-producing families and a large team of people committed to the same mission.Headed by agricultural engineers Paulo Lemus and Alecy Andrade, ANEI focuses on increasing productivity and improving procedures, to achieve the highest-quality coffee from each variety of coffee tree. As of 2016, ANEI had 112 women coffee-growing members, supported 33 students with educational grants, had a comprehensive range of certified Fairtrade Organic coffees in northern Colombia, and had created simplified and transparent organizational and commercial models between customers and producers.Processing.
This coffee is the work of approximately 700 producers in northern Colombia, and it’s certified Fairtrade and Organic. Cherry was pulped in hand-cranked machines and beans were washed, fermented for approximately 18 hours and then dried on raised beds, in the sun and in small solar greenhouses.
Cupping notes: Caramel, grape and floral notes; sweet and clean. Bright acidity, round body.
Colombian "ANEI" 1lb Bag
Choosing Fair Trade Certified products ensures farmers get a fair deal. It helps keep their kids in school, improve their communities, protect the enviroment and grow the best products possible for you.
* Organic farmers do not use harmful or super-toxic chemicals on their coffee crops. The coffee that you drink is as “clean” as possible. This means you are not putting dangerous pesticides or insecticides into your body each morning.
* The lack of pesticides do not destroy the soil, a critical factor in the nutritional value of all organic food.
* Most organic coffee is shade-grown and this directly impacts taste. According to Silvia Covelli, CEO of True Origin Organics and a member of the Organic Coffee Collaboration, “the best tasting coffees are the ones that are shade-grown. This is because coffee is a very aromatic plant and absorbs all the flavors and aromas from surrounding trees, such as plantains, cacao and fruits. The exotic aromas come out when not exposed to chemicals.”