Rigoberto Mancía Sr. & Jr., farms Ccd AND El Roble

We’re a father and son who work together, although we each have our own land titles…

I, Rigoberto Jr, own around half a hectare, and my dad approximately double that. It’s not much, we know that, but it allows us to feed ourselves and have a roof above our heads.

My dad started with kidney beans and corn, on a piece of land he rented, but as soon as he could, he bought a tiny plot for himself and started to grow coffee. He was convinced that coffee would lead to more financial security, and he taught me how to work the land since I was a boy. 

I’m happy to be a coffee grower, but I feel shaken and debilitated by the ferocious forces that the international markets have on our lives. Our livelihoods are at stake and we are too vulnerable, too dependent on factors that we cannot influence, to determine our own destiny and build a stable future. So we try to look for ways to become less dependent of the ruthless, conventional market.  

My dad joined Cafesmo four years ago and that has been incredibly helpful, so I decided to join as well. Now, are coffees are FTO certified, we receive technical assistance, it has become somewhat easier to sell our coffees, and it’s helpful to be part of a larger group. More excitedly even, I have learned to prepare micro-lots, with my own beans, but also with my dad’s of course.

Recently, I prepared 8 bags of washed Parainema and right after that I’ve experimented with a honey preparation, for the first time. But I decided to try only one bag of that. We are so small, we can’t ill-afford to lose much coffee on experiments. Soon, Cafesmo’s Q grader will provide me with the profile of this nano-lot. 

On our finca, we keep bees as well. They increase the yield of the tiny plots we have, and we retrieve enough honey to sell some of it to neighbors now. 

I’m filled with expectation and hopeful to do a lot more next year!

Farm facts

Our farms are near one another and together they measure around 1,4 hectares, located at 1,320 meters.

The cultivars are Parainema and Catimoro and all coffees are FTO certified.

The finca’s are in the middle of pine forest, so we hardly need any other trees for shade.

This farm is Rain Forest Alliance certified.