Colombia Supremo Bucaramanga El Gato

In Colombia’s Santander region, the majority of the coffee plantations are characterized by their abundant forests that help sustain a natural coffee growing environment favorable to biodiversity. Amazingly throughout Santander approximately 91% of the total number of coffee trees are shaded! — 61% semi-shaded and 30% fully shaded, allowing producers to develop natural, environmentally friendly ecosystems based on organic fertilizers and the surrounding forest. There are a total of 31,929 registered coffee growers in Santander; of its 87 municipalities, 75 of them grow coffee. Coffee farms here are typically highly modernized and produce mainly rust-resistant Castillo, Colombia, Caturra and Typica varieties.

The Northeastern Colombian Coffee Cooperative has 2,091 members spread across not just Bucaramanga but also the neighboring micro-regions of Rionegro, San Vicente, San Andrés, Floridablanca, El Carmen, Zapatoca, and El Playón. The coop is involved in the purchase of both coffee and cocoa beans in order to maintain and help regulate sustainable pricing in local markets. The coop is able to provide coffee farmers a variety of benefits and support mechanisms such as milling services, quality/cupping evaluations and a warehouse/depository for any of their provisions related to coffee production. The coop also offers assistance with economic and finance programs in the form of credit for the purchase of fertilizers and crop advances prior to harvest as well as funding for farming equipment, agricultural supplies, accident & health insurance, medical supplies and emergency expensenses. Additional discounts on agricultural products relating to coffee are provided directly from the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNC) research and development programs.