WCS Bolivia program provided support to its partner Orygen, social enterprise of the coffee and cacao producers of Northern La Paz in the export of the 'Eco de las Aves' coffee beans to the company Nømad Coffee in Barcelona. This activity is part of the Madidi landscape conservation strategy, with the aim of halting the advancement of the agricultural frontier and providing opportunities to improve the income of the communities.
On February 15, Orygen exported a micro lot of 400 kg of coffee overseas, to Nømad Coffee. The newly exported coffee comes from the 2018 harvest, produced under canopy shade, at 1,300 masl. The coffee producer in this occasion/opportunity is Benito Huallpa, from the community of Chuchuca, with more than 20 years’ experience producing coffee, and founding partner of the Association of Larecaja Regional Ecological Coffee Producers (APCERL). Their coffee plantations have been organically certified and hold the 'Bird Friendly' seal, for contributing to the protection of birds.
The coffee bean has been properly fermented, washed under spring water and dried under the sun. According to coffee tasters of Orygen, they describe it as: 'Aroma of ripe fruit with a clean pineapple scent; It has a caramel and brown sugar sweetness, and a bright citrus acidity. A fine and intense body and a nice aftertaste to dehydrated grapes. It got a score of 86 in coffee cupping.
The partnership with Nømad Coffee opens up an important opportunity for coffee producers. This small and newly established company poses as a challenge to get to know the products they work with first-hand in order to promote its qualities. To this end, their visit is expected for the next harvest, with the objective of carrying out fermentation tests with Benito and other coffee producers. This is a new work experience and will contribute to further improve the quality of this excellent coffee.