Monday, April 25, 2011

Don Pedro, a full-time farmer in Guatemala

During my most recent visit to Guatemala, I had the opportunity to meet Don Pedro Hu Ortega, a coffee farmer who told me what it’s like to live and work on a coffee farm. During our lengthy conversation, he explained to me the specific tasks that an organic coffee producer must perform to harvest the crop.

Don Pedro receives an annual visit from the certification inspectors and has to work hard year round to meet the standards. To him it’s worth it because, in his words, organic farming is a form of production that allows one to remain conscious of his impact on the environment while also producing a good, marketable product – something very important to his family’s quality of life.

Don Pedro learned to grow organic coffee from the Chajulense Association, a local cooperative made up of coffee producers and exporters. He was one of the first growers to focus on this form of production. He even went to Mexico to take a course from a cooperative called UCIRI, an organization with extensive experience in organic farming.

As an organic producer, he must undertake a number of activities. Three that he considers very important are shade management, pruning and fertilization. There are, of course, other activities that require a lot of attention. Seed selection for his nursery, for example, is a task that requires both skill and thorough observation in order to identify the most well-suited and productive plants.

Don Pedro told me that he’s seen producers who pay little attention to their coffee fields. Sometimes they only clean their fields just before the harvest. He shared:

The advice I would give to other producers is to be conscious of the importance of doing all of these necessary tasks—producing fertilizer as well as other tasks. I know that if we pay attention to coffee, it’s profitable. The objective is to be profitable in our work. Why am I going to grow coffee if it doesn’t pay, if it won’t allow me to pay my bills? And that’s exactly what one’s looking for, for coffee to be a profitable activity.

Don Pedro has three hectares, a little more than seven acres, sown with coffee and, because coffee is a biannual crop, this means his harvest alternates between a good year and a bad one. This year he produced only 50 sacks of parchment coffee, but in a good year he may produce between 60 and 65.

When I asked Don Pedro if he thought it possible to make a living by producing coffee, he responded immediately with an emphatic yes. What he didn’t mention, though, is that it’s possible for Don Pedro because he engages in other activities to supplement his income.

In a nearby community he manages some 50 beehives of European honeybees, whose honey he exports to Germany through the Association Chajulense. On his coffee plantation he produces different types of bananas, cardamom, various types of citrus and annatto (also known as urucú, a condiment, food coloring and medicinal plant). He also has five head of cattle and chickens for meat and eggs.

In all honesty I was surprised by his confidence in his ability to make a living from coffee farming. What I came to realize, though, is that Don Pedro considers himself, above all else, a coffee farmer. Any other activities he engages in are secondary. They are not quantifiable to him. They don’t count strictly as income, even though they are, almost certainly, what allow him to continue coffee farming. The reasons for this are complex and require much more space than a blog post can offer.

Without a doubt Don Pedro is a diversified and hard-working producer whose livelihood is not exclusively dependent upon the coffee harvest. It’s clear that his production methods are in many ways more sustainable than those of other farmers. This is due to his respect for the environment, diversification, balance, and the connections between his production systems. For example, his plantation’s shade comes from plants and trees that provide income, food and organic fertilizer. He uses the earth in a conscientious way, be it to grow crops, provide pasture or produce honey.

Through this visit, I learned that integrating product diversification into coffee plantations is pivotal to maintaining food security. Putting all of one’s eggs into one basket has always been a mistake. Don Pedro’s work served as a reminder of the importance of diversification, and is an example to us all.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Why cycle across America for Coffee Kids?

By Dayle Walker

My name is Dayle Walker and, along with Steven Prime, I am one-half of the cycling duo that is going to bike across America for Coffee Kids. Our film crew, made up of Arturs Liepins and Rebecca Horsburgh, will accompany us as we take on the mission to cycle 3,000 miles in 30 days through 11 states across the continent of America. We understand the challenges ahead of us, especially those of the elements, namely heat and the risk of tornadoes. We also know that the trek through mountain ranges and barren deserts will be grueling.

Since taking on the project, one little three-letter word keeps cropping up: Why? Why would I cycle across America? I must either be crazy or brave. Can it not be a bit of both? And why Coffee Kids?

I’m from England, and Coffee Kids is not well-known here, so I often have to explain what Coffee Kids is about and why we’re doing this. Steve owns his own coffee shop, called Esquires Coffee House, back in our hometown and has long supported Coffee Kids. So it made sense to support something he already believes in and that is also integrated into his business.

For me, personally, it’s about freedom.

I live in a city called Coventry, right in the heart of England. I have a good job, a nice house, eat well, am healthy and play as much as I like because I’m completely free to do what I want. However, the families that Coffee Kids supports don’t have the freedom that I have. They and their children struggle day in and day out just to put food on the table. This not only affects the children’s health, but also their chance at life. Many families can’t afford to send their children to school, and so, many kids work in the fields, helping their families make ends meet.

Steven and I want to raise as much money as we can for Coffee Kids by taking advantage of our freedom, which allows us to take on any opportunity we desire, so that we can give families a chance to do the same—to be healthy, educated and have the opportunity to become and do whatever they dream.

To support Steve and Dayle’s trek across America for Coffee Kids, please visit their donation page at CrowdRise.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Coffee Kids SCAA Reception

Only 10 days until the SCAA in Houston. If you’re going to be there—and we hope that you will—be sure to pay us a visit at our reception and at booth #625.

This year’s Coffee Kids reception will include refreshments, a showing of the film After the Harvest and a discussion on food security led by a representative from our partner organization AUGE from Veracruz, Mexico.

You can find us in Ballroom B of the George Brown Convention Center on April 29 from 5 to 7 p.m.

To see the official invitation, add your name to the guest list, or to add the event to your calendar, head over to Punchbowl.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Women Saving in Solidarity

One of the many things Coffee Kids has learned over the years is the importance of solidarity. The success of long-term projects depends on the support, reassurance and dedication found in community.

The importance of solidarity is especially apparent within Groups of Women Saving in Solidarity (Grupos de mujeres en ahorro solidario) (GMAS). Established in 1992 in the communities of Cosautlán and Xico, in the state of Veracruz, GMAS was a product of the work of the cooperative AUGE.

The results from the savings groups were so remarkable that another partner, CECOCAFEN in Nicaragua, decided to create women’s savings groups in their communities as well. In 1999 Coffee Kids sponsored an exchange between the two cooperatives so that they could share expertise and see firsthand what it means to be in this together. There are now more than 150 savings groups in Mexico and Nicaragua and more than 4,000 women participating in groups in Mexico, Nicaragua and Guatemala.

Women’s experiences in the savings groups are as varied as the women themselves. Some are widows; others are single mothers, and some are waiting for their spouses to return from the United States. Some are merely saving, or saving money for the first time in their lives. Some are starting small businesses and others are growing larger enterprises. Their husbands’ reactions run the gamut as well. Some of the women attend meetings in spite of their partners’ objections, while others invite their husbands to join them. Some of the men even offer to volunteer for the group, recognizing its importance and even defending it from critics.

Most community members would not dispute the importance of GMAS—the benefits have been numerous. Coffee Kids has seen how GMAS has helped strengthen communities and women over the years. Not only have the GMAS groups strengthened local economies, they have given women the opportunity to learn new skills, such as administration, leadership and planning. The microcredit programs, which are an important part of GMAS, give women the economic security they need to plan, become more self-sufficient, and also less vulnerable to unforeseeable events such as illness, natural disasters or death. Many innovative projects have organically grown from the GMAS meetings. Within the microcredit scheme, projects in the areas of health, economic diversification and food security have become successful ways to meet the communities’ needs.

The road to sustainability may not be an easy one. And we are, after all, in this together. GMAS is a shining example of what it means to build community, support one another and make real change a reality.

Friday, February 18, 2011

WBC Winner Michael Phillips on why he loves Coffee Kids

Photographer Mark Shimahara recently accompanied World Barista Championship Winner Michael Phillips and our own José Luis Zárate on a trip to Guatemala. They took time to visit Coffee Kids projects, like this one Acatenango. Here’s what Michael had to say:

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

What’s behind the coffee trade (part 3): The market and the farmer continued

Coffee Kids regularly goes to origin and talks to the producers about their relationship with the coffee market. They tell us that low prices are nothing new for them. They have found ways to get by, even if it is only a temporary solution.

When prices rise, though, specialty coffee producers find themselves facing different challenges. Program Director José Luis Zárate recently interviewed Tomás Pacheco López, coffee producer and one of the leaders of the Miramar Cooperative in the Mixteca region of Oaxaca. He explained that coffee cooperatives such as his sign their contracts long before harvest. When the harvest does arrive, prices can be so high that it is very tempting for the farmer to sell his coffee to the coyote at a better price than what the cooperative can offer. This then creates conflict and divisive behavior within the organization. Members of the cooperative begin to feel suspicious of the leaders and their motives for not paying as high as the market dictates.

Tomás explains that is difficult to explain the international coffee market to the producers. And so the cooperative uses the money it has saved for community investment or borrows money to artificially raise the price of coffee and therefore meet the demands of the producers.

So coffee prices rise. Some say that the farmer is finally getting paid a fair price. But cooperatives are faced with only a few bleak options. They could refuse to comply with their contracts, given that the producers do not want to sell their coffee for less than what the coyotes offer. Or the cooperative spends its savings or accumulates debt trying to compensate for the disparity in prices. Or the cooperative may face disintegration when the leaders are unable to face the buyers, who demand that producers comply with their contracts, and the producers who demand a more just price. To further complicate things, local traders take advantage of the situation by speculating and buying coffee at one price from one group and at a lower price from another group, thereby creating the appearance of a threat rather than healthy competition.

There have been cases, although rare, of cooperatives that have developed strong relationships with their buyers. In these instances, the buyer understands the potentially serious consequences of not adjusting the price to better reflect the market. The buyer is more sensitive to the needs of the producer, and they are able to reach an agreement that makes for a long-lasting relationship.

One may be tempted to think that certification is the answer to a volatile market. Unfortunately, though, there are not adequate measures in place to support the producers when the market becomes unpredictable and governing bodies have been unable to respond with proper compensation or regulation.

This has lead to an overall disappointment in the certification process, whether it be organic, fair trade or both. Many cooperatives believed that the seal would protect them from the negative effects of the market. Many have come to the conclusion, though, that the protection is insufficient when prices are low and a disadvantage when prices are high.

The group of people in the coffee chain that should receive the most protection and support turns out to be the group that is most vulnerable to the market and its volatility.

What’s behind the coffee trade (part 2): The market and the farmer

Here’s another term to put under your belt: commodity dependency. Somewhere between 20 and 25 million families worldwide produce and sell coffee. That is, it is their livelihood. They depend on it. This is a commodity dependency, which leads us to what is referred to as the coffee paradox.

The coffee paradox refers to the disparity between the poverty of coffee producers and the rising profits of retailers. It is estimated that 90 percent of coffee production occurs in developing nations, while the majority of specialty coffee is consumed in the developed world.

It is also estimated that the coffee producer will reap less than 10 percent of the retail price of specialty coffee. Small-scale coffee farmers, often looking to make ends meet any way possible, are especially vulnerable to an extremely volatile market and those local traders, exporters and representatives of large companies who are looking to buy at the lowest price possible.

The ever-changing coffee market makes it very difficult for farmers to be able to take into account the projected income of any given harvest. Without knowing what the international price of coffee will be, they cannot plan production accordingly. This volatility also makes it difficult for governments to respond effectively to estimated revenue with social spending and debt servicing.

Now if we zoom in a bit more, we can see that there are a number of factors at a local level that contribute to a farmer’s income. For instance, a farmer’s access to technical assistance, lines of credit and transportation all make a big difference in a family’s ability to get by.

Coffee Kids regularly goes to origin and talks to the producers about their relationship with the coffee market. They tell us that low prices are nothing new for them. They have found ways to get by, even if it is only a temporary solution.

To be continued…

What’s behind the coffee trade (part 1)

Lately it seems that coffee prices are steadily climbing. To really understand what’s happening, we have to understand the market, how prices are decided upon and how this affects those involved, especially those who are often overlooked—the coffee farmers.

Coffee trading 101

In order to get the big picture, we first need to take a look at how trading works. For those of us who are neophytes in the rules of the trade, we’ll start with the basics.

Coffee prices, and therefore coffee farmers’ income, are affected by a number of factors, such as world market prices, climatic issues, supply and demand, speculation, political unrest, transportation costs and a host of other often unpredictable variables.

Coffee is most often traded in the form of futures contracts through the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)—previously called the New York Board of Trade—and the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE). These are the institutions that determine the price of coffee on a minute-by-minute basis.

A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell an item on a specified date in the future at an agreed upon price. Each futures contract covers 37,500 pounds of green coffee. Note that roasted coffee or ready-to-drink beverages are different products requiring different contracts.

Futures contracts allow both buyers and sellers to manage their risk in a market that can often be volatile. That being said, most coffee farmers do not have the financial resources to take a position in the futures market and often lack the skills to manage that position.

One of the more recent and influential factors in the coffee market is speculation. Before the deregulation of the 1990s, speculation had a place in the commodities market. It was reigned in because classic laws of supply and demand still controlled market prices.

Then, as a result of the tireless efforts of banks, hedge funds and politicians, regulations were systematically discarded, leaving us with an all but imaginary market in food speculation, controlled by people who have little to do with agriculture.

John Vidal’s article in The Guardian succinctly explains the effect of speculation. It is estimated that between 70 and 80 percent of the food market is now speculation. This means that when we get word that Brazil is experiencing heavy rains and mudslides, the price of coffee would normally go up about $1 per bushel, according to Mike Masters of Masters Capital Management, as quoted in Vidal’s article. But, thanks to a speculative market, that price jumps up to $2 to $3 per bushel.

Recently, a wave of investors has had a disproportionate influence on prices within many of the commodity trading markets. These speculators, who often have no commercial interest in the industries in which they invest, are able to infuse large amounts of capital into the market in the hope of making a large, short-term profit. Because they never intend to take physical possession of any of the products in which they invest, they are able to turn a profit on market movements in either direction. This takes markets outside of the realm of simple supply and demand and makes them much more unpredictable.

What we have then, are groups of farmers working to produce coffee for an extremely volatile market that is even more so today due to the intervention of speculators that may or may not have anything to do with the coffee trade. It becomes clear who benefits from the system and who is often left behind.

Featured Donor: Sweet Maria’s

Over the past few years, interest in home coffee roasting has grown exponentially, and Sweet Maria’s, based in Oakland, CA, has played a central role in the movement.

Their website offers advice on how to choose a home roaster, detailed roasting instructions, photos of beans at each roasting stage and forums for discussing all things coffee. They also sell supplies, equipment and green coffee to get eager home roasters started.

For the second year, Sweet Maria’s produced the 2011 Dogs of Coffee Calendar, which benefits Coffee Kids and five other charities. The calendar has photographs of dogs and other creatures from various coffee-producing regions. Co-owner Thompson Owen took the photographs, except for Mr. May, which was contributed by Aleco Chigounis.

The unique calendar is available for purchase on Sweet Maria’s Web site and is currently offered as buy one, get one free!

Sweet Maria’s is a long-time donor and has supported Coffee Kids through various fundraisers throughout the years. They strive to educate their customers and online followers about our work, and their site is consistently one of the top referrer’s to the Coffee Kids Web site.

Do you home roast? Show and tell over on our Facebook page.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Federal programs in Mexico do little to support communities

There is a town called Guadalupe Miramar about six hours from Oaxaca City. It’s a small town that may seem isolated to many of us, yet it isn’t in comparison to many of those found in the Mixtec sierra of Oaxaca.

For 14 years, Coffee Kids has worked with a partner organization called The Center of Support for the Popular Movement of Oaxaca (CAMPO). Within CAMPO there is a group of women called the Rural Women’s Union of the Mixteca (UMCAMIX). UMCAMIX was created with purpose of helping women find solidarity among each other and strengthen their business skills with the ultimate goal of making them self-sufficient members of their community. When UMCAMIX began, there were 80 participants. Now, 10 years later, there are 25.

Under the current president of Mexico, Felipe Calderón, there is a federal program called Oportunidades. Under previous presidencies it was called Solidaridad. The program began with a large donation from the InterAmerican Develoment Bank. This donation was soon used in its entirety, and the program now relies on borrowed funds to continue its work, thereby making it unreliable and fairly unpredictable.

Perhaps the proposed idea was a positive one: to bring education, health and development to rural Mexico. The program’s coordinators, though, soon realized that people have to work long hours every day to make ends meet. They don’t have time to attend federal workshops. And so, the government began to pay for their attendance. These workshops, however, are taught by students, and there is little to no follow up. There is no collection of data, monitoring of progress, or measurement of impact. There is an initial payment and then nothing. Over time, these workshops have become a way for the government to buy votes in areas where voter turnout is low. Now, 90 percent of the women in Guadalupe have access to Oportunidades.

The international programs department has found over the years that this may be creating a bit of competition in the coffee-growing regions of Mexico. More than once Coffee Kids has planned a visit to a community with plenty of anticipation only to find out that Oportunidades happened to plan a visit to the same community on the same day. Participants are only paid if they show up to the government meetings. This results in a lower turnout for Coffee Kids.

Women involved in the federal program cannot understand why the UMCAMIX women continue to work on their own projects rather than relying on those of the government. The women of UMCAMIX believe in sustainability. They are proud of their personal achievements, and know that the day government funds are no longer available, they will be able to provide for their families.

Margarita Elodia López López is the president of UMCAMIX. She lives one to two hours walking distance from Guadalupe. She explained that thanks to their hard work and savings, the women were able to buy land and build a two-story home out of bricks and wood with an eco-bathroom and a kitchen.

They have learned from their failures as well as from their successes. When they were building their meeting house, they made the mistake of using their savings and dipping into the pharmacy’s funds. Many of the townswomen pointed fingers and laughed at how they had used up all they had. Due to their good credit history, though, they were able to take out a line of credit and replenish the pharmacy’s goods. This experience taught them about the importance of record keeping, savings and responsible financial management. They’ve not only recovered from their mistake, they’ve gotten ahead.

As Coffee Kids International Program Director Jose Luis Zárate and International Program Coordinator Pedro Pérez walked through Guadalupe, they saw the Oportunidades-funded nurseries with withering plants and soil that was not properly prepared for planting. They saw the need for groups like CAMPO to truly teach sustainable farming practices, conduct follow-up evaluations and work toward building self-sustaining communities rather than communities dependent upon government handouts. They saw community members looking forward to their next government-paid meeting rather than toward new projects that would better the community.

UMCAMIX is a strong example of the pride, knowledge and sense of solidarity that can be built upon when programs are created with the long-term benefit of the community in mind. These women feel a strong sense of ownership of their projects and the ways in which they’ve not only helped themselves, but the entire community. Coffee Kids works closely with its partner organizations to ensure that the work we do is sustainable and built from the community up.