Café Michel 'Honduras' organic coffee beans - 1kg

More about Café Michel coffee beans :

Main Caracteristics

Intensity

Strong coffee

origin

   Honduras

variety

100% Arabica

roast

roasted in

  France

Certification

  Certified Organic

A closer look at the COMSA Cooperative

In Honduras, the coffee farmers of the Marcala region are the heirs of the Lenca people. Although their language has been lost, most of the traditional farming techniques have been maintained. As a result, COMSA producers practice one of the most sophisticated organic production systems in Central America. The COMSA cooperative model has been replicated and is having an impact at the national level in the promotion of organic coffee growing.

Marcala is a municipality in the department of La Paz, located in a mountainous area that is difficult to access. The coffee plots are located between 1300 and 1500 metres above sea level. Before the infamous "Rust crisis" of 2012-2013, the main coffee species were Catuai, Pacas and Caturra.

Nowadays, producers grow more resistant species such as Typica, a variety that has adapted particularly well to the climate and altitude of this region. In contrast to the bad reputation of Honduran coffees, and thanks to the great know-how of the producers, who have been growing coffee for several generations, Marcala is today recognised as producing one of the best coffees in the world. In order to protect the qualities of their coffee and have them recognised, COMSA, supported by the Honduran Coffee Institute (IHCAFE) and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), has obtained a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). COMSA members use organic and biodynamic practices to produce.

The organisation is constantly innovating with these techniques and makes a point of passing on its knowledge to the community and to other Latin American cooperatives. Fortaleza is a centre for experimentation and training in agoecology and permaculture, where research on bio-fertilisers (biofabricas) is carried out. Producers train other producers in organic composting techniques using coffee cherries, cow manure, minerals, ashes and mountain micro-organisms - resources that are already naturally present on their territory. A team of 25 agronomists accompanies the producers in their coffee fields and trains them in the production of bokashi - a compost made from fermented organic matter that degrades easily and fertilises the plots. The results are there: the yield of the plots and the quality of the grains is constantly increasing and rivals the yields of conventional agriculture. The average yield per hectare for a COMSA producer is well above the national average and contamination is low.