Colombia - Monte Bonito

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On the road between Manizales and Honda sits the small town of Monte bonito that border the slopes of the Cerro Bravo and has a population of less than a thousand inhabitants. The town still holds onto the traditions of the campesinos and allows a view into the history of life as farmers in the high Andes of Colombia. The town has a tumultuos history being heavily affected by the civil war and three times was taken over by the FARC in its past.

Most of the coffee growers from this region, are very small with only between 1 - 3 hectares with 89 associates in this group. They are responsible for full management of the farm and will pick the coffee themselves only asking for help from their neighbours when needed.

During the harvest the coffee is picked, depulped and left to ferment for between 16 to 18 hours. Next day the coffee is then washed and is ready for drying. Some of them have ´´Eldas¨ (on the roof of the house), some others ¨carros quindianos´´ (drying beds with a rail system ) the rest have a parabolic tents for drying the coffee for between 10 -14 days depending on the climate.

After this the coffee will then be delivered to the Manizales Cooperative collection point in the town. Here it is assessed and separated according to quality where the producers receive extra payment for good quality. There is also an extra premium for producers who deliver the coffee to the Cooperartive below 11% moisture. From the collection point the coffee then travels to the cooperative warehouse in Manizales where it is stored.

After this the coffee is then milled and prepped for shipment.