CESMACH background:
CESMACH is located in one of the Southern most parts of Mexico in the Sierra Madre Mountains, close to the Guatemalan border. The headquarters (warehouse and offices) of CESMACH are in the small town of Jaltenango, 5 hours on the road from the main city Tuxtla Gutiérrez, which is the state capital of Chiapas.
The farmers are extremely isolated; it can take up to 8 hours by car from the main city in the region over poor roads to reach the furthest farmer. This region is designated as an international biosphere nature reserve (called El Triunfo), which incorporates a cloud forest and tropical jungle, making it one of Mexico’s most pristine natural environments. The richness in important flora and fauna is internationally recognised.
CESMACH aims to develop and demonstrate sound agricultural practices, which are in harmony with the natural resources and promote social and economic development of the poor communities. In doing so, it contributes to the improvement of the relationship between the environment and human activity through ecologically sound agriculture – ensuring social justice, economic and technical viability.
CESMACH is committed to sustainable and organic production. In order to deliver on this aim, CESMACH has recruited a team, which offer training to farmers and ongoing technical support for organic conversion. This technical team supports the network of farmer promotores (farmers who are trained as technical assistants to offer advice and training to other farmers) who help train and monitor the activities of other farmers.
In a region of real intrinsic quality, with perfect growing conditions at a high altitude, CESMACH has made extensive investments in ensuring that only the best quality coffee is selected and received by the cooperative. It has invested in building quality control systems, assembling a coffee tasting laboratory and recruiting and training young cuppers to run it.