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Mexico 2010
Red Nacional de Organizaciones Cafetaleros Sustentables A.C. (REDCAFES) was the beneficiary organization for this farmer-to-farmer project. REDCAFES began operations in 2002 as an umbrella organization offering technical assistance in production and market support to small and recently established sustainable coffee farmer cooperatives in the southern coffee producing states of Mexico.
November 2010
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REDCAFES has some 1680 members from 85 communities in coffee growing regions of Oaxaca, Chiapas, Puebla and Veracruz. In addition, since 2006 REDCAFES has worked on a contract basis with 1,000 small-scale coffee producers in the state of Guerrero. They offer organic production advice as well as technical assistance to better market coffee in the international export market and most recently in local, roasted markets. |
REDCAFES has recently opened a coffee shop in the town of Ciudad Serdan, which serves as both an outlet for the roasted coffee and an additional source of employment. The café, “Mezcla de Aromas” has been open since the summer 2010 and was financed by Redcafes with the intention to: promote the brand “Mezcla de Aromas”, provide the local markets with higher quality, sustainable coffee alternative, and to educate consumers about the work of the local cooperatives. This is the first pilot project and Redcafes has intentions of opening other coffee houses throughout the country near their cooperative locations.
Participants: 
Julia Baumgartner, Just Coffee Cooperative - Madison, WI
Dan Bailey, Amavida Coffee - Santa Rosa Beach, FL
Objectives of the Visit:
- Improve quality of the roasted coffee
- Evaluate roasted sales marketing and sales strategies
- Gain understanding around the causes of current challenges with their Café project and make concrete suggestions
- Discuss with management to improve their understanding around expectations and restrictions within Fair Trade systems
- Demonstrate and share knowledge around industry standards for specialty coffee export-grade quality control practices
- Learn about other production and marketing challenges to help them identify best strategies for the future
Approach:
How we accomplished the objectives:
- Visited the Redcafes Coffee house in Cuidad Serdan to review their business plan, roasting operations, and operations of the café.
- In Veracruz, visited the coffee lands of Cerro de Cintepec; reviewed roaster operations, grinding, and packaging operations; visited processing facilities, and reviewed their mark “Sierra de Los Tuxtla”.
- Visited the Redcafe Offices in Veracruz to review the facilities, roasted coffee project “Mezcla de Aromas” and participated in a cupping workshop.
- Met with Redcafe to discuss certification issues with FLO. 5) Conducted a final meeting to summarize observations and recommendations.
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