Fair Trade Field Notes: Guatemala

Greetings from Guatemala. My name is Michael, and I used to work on the CRS Fair Trade Program with Jackie. In September I reluctantly gave up working on Fair Trade full time and began working as the CRS Regional Technical Advisor for Sustainable Livelihoods in Latin America and the Caribbean (a mouthful, I know). The good news is that I still get to do some work on Fair Trade from the producer end of the supply chain, and occasionally get to spend time with Fair Traders from the United States who come to Guatemala to build relationships with their artisan and farmer partners. Recently I had the opportunity to visit here briefly with Chris Treter, co-founder of Higher Grounds Trading Company in Lake Leelanau, MI, and a long-time friend of the CRS Fair Trade Program.

Chris was in Guatemala to conduct a series of basic roasting workshops for four different cooperatives here that are starting to take roasting into their own hands: Loma Linda, Nueva Alianza, Santa Anita and APECAFORM, a cooperative that CRS has supported since the early 1990s. These coops are working with Café Conciencia, a local NGO, to explore the possibility of working to roast coffee here for sale within Guatemala, and eventually perhaps for export, as well. When Cafe Conciencia went looking for someone to help them build their skills, it was no surprise that Chris answered the call, just as he and his wife Jody did in 2005 when I invited them to go hiking and camping in the mountains of Nicaragua for three days with no showers or toilets to get to know the farmers we are accompanying there; just as he did when farmers in Chiapas asked for help with water projects; just as he did when U.S. university students wanted to travel overseas to learn more about Fair Trade in person; just as he seems to do just about all the time for just about anybody who asks.

Chris knows his way around a roaster. When Chris and Jody started Higher Grounds a few years ago, it was just the two of them. At the beginning, they did it all–visited farmer coops overseas, educated consumers all over the United States, cupped coffee, answered phones, made deliveries, made sales calls, cleaned floors, paid bills, etc. Oh, yeah…and they roasted. A lot. Well, Chris roasted, mostly. For a while, it was practically all he ever did. Every time I called him for the first two years we knew each other, it was the same conversation: “Hi, Michael. Actually I’m roasting right now. Can I call you back?” So Chris knows his way around a roaster, and generously offered to give of his time and talents to share some of his knowledge with the farmers in Guatemala involved in this project, including the women of APECAFORM who have used two Fair Trade Fund grants to improve their roastery and coffee marketing skills.

His trips out to the remote communities where the farmers live and work were long, uncomfortable, and in some cases, eventful–on the way out to APECAFORM, his truck slid into a ditch and got stuck against a hillside.  After more than an hour of trying to extract the truck, some quick thinking and heavy lifting by CRS-Guatemala ag program officer Catalino Miculax helped get them free and on their way.  Whew!

Once Chris arrived in his host communities, however, everything went much smoother.  He gave four separate hands-on trainings in basic roasting skills, and found that some of the coops were already beyond the basics.  In the end, he was very impressed by all the farmer/roasters he met, optimistic about their ability to produce quality coffee for the growing (and increasingly sophisticated) Guatemalan market, and noted in particular how eager the women of APECAFORM were to get their hands on their still-new roaster under the direction of a real pro.  Catalino confirms that the admiration was mutual–the communities that hosted Chris enjoyed his visit, and learned a lot in short period of time.  With the support of Cafe Conciencia and CRS, among others, these cooperatives will continue to refine their roasting skills and strategies for marketing their coffee.  It may not make its debut in a coffee shop near you anytime soon, but stay tuned to the CRS Fair Trade blog for updates on progress in the local market here.

On behalf of the people we serve in Guatemala, thanks, Chris, for your generous support!

- - - - - - - -

P.S.: The Spoonmakers.

I almost forgot.  Chris also took advantage of his time in Guatemala to visit with Los Cuchareros, a cooperative of artisans in San Lucas Tolimán on the shores of Lake Atitlán who create beautiful spoons from sustainably harvested wood.  Chris and Jody have been selling a modest number of the spoons and other handcrafted wood items from Los Cuchareros in their new cafe in Michigan, but had never had the opportunity to meet with the artists and their families personally.  Chris was deeply impressed by the group’s artistic ability, commitment to ecological sustainability and financial management skills, and surprised to learn during his visit that Higher Grounds is the group’s biggest customer!  Check out the spoons online, or or pick some up if you are ever lucky enough to get to Higher Grounds in Michigan’s breathtaking Leelanau Peninsula.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 19th, 2007 and is filed under Fair Trade . You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

One Response to “Fair Trade Field Notes: Guatemala”

1. Jackie Says:
   November 27th, 2007 at 3:48 pm

   Chris is blogging too. Read his latest posting about the coffee industry at
   http://www.beanactivist.wordpress.com

Leave a Reply

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website