Efraín Reyes León, Farm Las Barrancas

Decades ago, my grandparents sold our coffee in El Salvador and later my dad did the same thing.

We’re located right at the border and it was both easier and more attractive for them to sell to our ‘neighbors’ as they could fetch a bit more for their beans.

Nowadays, the situation has changed. It’s considerably more difficult to sell Honduran coffee in El Salvador due to increased regulation, but also, Honduran coffee has grown much in quality and therefore also in price, certain over the last decade. As a member of Cafesmo, I deliver my beans to Cafesmo’s wet mill and Jaime, our head of specialty coffee, is always good at selecting the best batches of my harvest to prepare a great micro-lot.

I’ve been growing coffee for 25 years myself and am quite knowledgeable, but I trust Jaime more when it comes to those small specialty batches as he has really learned for it and prepares dozens of lots every year for other members too. 

My wife and I have six children and the two of us work together. We own only 0,8 hectares of land so we can combine our individual strengths and qualities. My cousins also sometimes help out, mostly when it is time to keep the farm lean, in between harvest seasons. 

On our plot we have some citric fruit trees, like oranges, lime and lemon. We use the fruits for our own consumption and the trees provide much needed shade for the coffee plants, which mustn't be exposed to the tropical sunlight throughout the year.

As I work six days a week, and usually from six in the morning until sunset, I don’t have much time off. But I like what I do and when I’m not working, I love playing with the children, or simply relaxing to charge the battery for the next day. My life is quite nice as it is!

Farm Facts:

0,8 hectares at 1450 meters.

Pacas and Catuaí

Fair Trade and Organic and RFA certified.

Shade provided by local timber and also lime, lemon, orange.