Delia Solorzano & Family, Finca El Zapote

I’m 63 years old and started cultivating coffee when I was a child…

Now, I have nine children, five of whom work our land with me. Five big, beautiful sons, who tenderhearted call me their ‘queen of queens’. And I do feel the queen of our land; I am a part of it and couldn’t live without our finca, without a cup of my own coffee every day. Or two! My mom taught me how to brew it and I never changed.

When I was little, my parents still grew bourbon trees. They were huge, sometimes up to 6 meters high, but the entire finca was devastated by rust, I think somewhere in the sixties. Then, we shifted to herding some cattle, but we always kept some coffee for our own consumption, and since my sons are adults, we have gradually come back to it. I haven’t regretted it for a day, even though prices are so low now that we no longer make any money despite working the field every day.

So, some time ago we decided to join the cooperative, and now we feel stronger because we are part of a group, and because we receive valuable technical assistance. At first, I thought the young agronomist wouldn’t be able to teach me much, but now I am thankful to him. He has guided us through the process to certify for Fair Trade, and Organic labels, teaches us water management, soil conversation, and how to keep our land clean.

Now, we are ready to nurture direct ties with small quality roasters everywhere in the world. We are able to propose a variety of micro-lots and a stable stream of quality coffees.

Farm facts

My sons and I own 21 hectares, located at 1,400 to 1.450 meters. The only varieties we grow are Parainema and IHCAFE 90. Those are the most resistant against leaf rust.

We have planted lots of trees to provide shadow. Local varieties like guamo and liquidambar, but also banana, prunes, tangerines and pears. There’s also a lot of pine on our land that grows naturally in our region.

All our plots are FTO certified.

This farm is Rain Forest Alliance certified.