Direct Trade Coffee Partners from Guatemala

We recently started up again at the Kenosha Harbor Market, and we were reminded of the thriving network of local producers and the joy of knowing your farmer. How cool to chat with the folks who grow your food, or the ones who mill your grain and bake your bread.
You get to meet your coffee roasters which is pretty neat. 😊 We love to hang out and chat, but we're not the end of the supply chain. We're not your coffee farmers.

We just received our fresh crop from Dos Niñas in Guatemala, so this felt like the perfect time to introduce you to some of our favorite producers. These are your farmers. The daughters are the sixth generation at Finca San Luis El Volcancito.

Dos Niñas is our second direct-trade relationship, which means we order the coffee from the farm and all communication happens with the family. This has been an incredible shift for us and our business as we navigate the wild world of coffee, and we've been grateful to have meaningful updates and their perspective on the industry. 

Recently I reached out to Paulina to ask her and her father some questions, and I'd love to share this Q & A with you. Enjoy this peek into life as a coffee farmer. 

• What is a common misunderstanding or misconception in coffee farming? 

John: I think many consumers do not understand the entire process that takes place in order to produce one cup of coffee. Some might think that it is comparable to a soft drink. It is a beautiful thing when a client knows what goes into them enjoying their cup of coffee: a careful selection of the seed, preparing an area for the seedlings, transferring to the nursery once it has become a plant. One year later, planting it on the fields, caring for it for 2.5 years until it starts to produce beans. All in all, it takes 4 years from seed to production. Plus harvesting, which is a completely manual process spanning over 4 months. Exporting, importing. Meticulous roasting by you. 

• What does sustainability look like to you?

 John: Long term relationships, which are formed with honesty and great ethics between producer and roaster. This is the only way to have sustainability. 

Paulina: I echo these words. That is what true sustainability looks like both for farmers and roasters! It is a blessing to count on our roasters to purchase our coffee year after year. And I think it is a great comfort for them as well, for them to know that their coffee is being taken care of year-round, so that they can receive a consistent, high-quality cup every year. 

• What is one of the greatest joys of working on a coffee farm?

John: Witnessing God’s miracles daily. Just a few examples: He sends us the rain, in the amount that we need to have a beautiful flower. 10 days after that rain, we see more of God’s work, with the bees doing their pollination. The smell of the flowers is amazing as well!

• What is your favorite coffee and/or what's your favorite way to enjoy coffee?

John: I love all of San Luis El Volcancito’s coffee. I can’t say that I have a favorite. My  morning cup of coffee is my favorite. Grinding the coffee, enjoying its smell and then drinking it with my scrambled eggs and fruit! It is a spectacular experience every day. 

Paulina: I echo what my Dad said: if it comes from the farm, I love it! Of course that’s biased, but after so many years of drinking it, my morning would feel incomplete without it. I love preparing pourovers, especially on my Chemex. That San Luis black cup of coffee in the morning is the star of the breakfast show. 

• Tell me about some of the challenges you face in coffee, either locally or globally.

John: The last 3 years, we have had a shortage of pickers during harvest season. A lot of experienced and qualified people left to try and enter the United States. Thankfully, this problem has not been as bad as in other farms, some which have been unable to even pick all of their coffee. This is because we pay our workers above the average, and they truly enjoy coming to work for us. 

• I'd love to hear more about the family dynamic! Are there seasons your work overlaps more frequently, or do you all keep busy with your own separate responsibilities?

 Paulina: Our work definitely overlaps often, especially during harvest time but even more so when we are in the process of preparing our containers and sending them to the US. Aside from that, my dad handles the farm decisions, and I handle all the stateside work. We Facetime multiple times a week though, so we are always keeping each other up to speed on what is happening. 

• What sets your farm apart?

John: Sanctified work, work done with honor. We put our soul, life and heart into everything that we do. 

Paulina: Our passion and our traceability. My Dad has always taught us to work hard, and to do things right. He lives this by example every day, and I strive to do the same. Our traceability and family aspect of it is a beautiful thing in my opinion. At any time, we can tell you where your coffee came from. At any time, you can get in touch with me, or the farmer himself. There are no middle men. Just a hard working family that cares a lot about the land and about coffee, and that will give it our best to make sure you have the best cup of coffee possible. 

• It sounds like you and your sister were the primary agents in the expansion - were you exporting previously or selling somewhere else? What effects has this growth had on the farm?

Paulina: Historically, we have always sold our coffee locally in Guatemala. My Dad exported to Australia to a family friend for a few years. But San Luis really bloomed when Dos Niñas was founded. We are very blessed to have our family both in Guatemala and in the US, because it allows for the best of both worlds: ensuring our farm is in great shape and being able to find amazing roasters here. In this day and age, it is not possible to have a thriving farm unless you have long term relationships with roasters that value our work enough to pay fair and sustainable pricing. 

• What's your favorite season on the farm?

John: Flowering and harvest season are my favorite. 

Paulina: Same! Definitely the same. 

• I love the section on your website about the farm workers, it seems like you really take care of the pickers and other laborers. 

John: Yes, we are very different from other farms. The same workers come back to us year after year during harvest season because we give them great attention and care, and we have a high volume of coffee for them to cut. And for the families that live on the farm, we make sure there is work year-round for them, as well as for people that live in the surrounding villages.

• Anything else you wish more folks understood about coffee farming? 

Paulina: Knowledge on the coffee process goes a long way. My hope is that everyone who enjoys a cup of our coffee knows the level of detail that each step in the process takes. How many steps there are from seed to cup. The dedication and attention to detail that is required. And the passion that farmers have for the land and for their produce.

John: My biggest job as a farmer is to speak and pray to God and place my confidence in Him. He sends us the rain when we need it, and then we pray for no rain during harvest season so that we do not lose our ripe cherries.  It is also essential to do each job on the farm at the right time: giving nutrients to the leaves so that flowering season is a success, fertilizing correctly for the growth of the bean. Everything in the right amount at the right time.