Zapote Verde - Honduras 2011 Verified listing

Conservation and environmental features: The farm is located in the buffer zone of the Mountain of Santa Barbara. This mountain is a natural reserve declared National Park that bears its same name. It is one of the most diverse and least explored ecosystems in Central America having forests clouds, rain forests and pine forests. It consists of a total area of 321.23 Km2. There is a great diversity of wildlife, such as pacas, squirrels, raccoons, bobcats, parrots, maids, mountain cocks and a variety of timber species such as pine, cedar, mahogany and laurel beside other species such as avocados, cablotes, sweetgum, madreado, hormigo, sapodilla, ferns and orchids. Indigenous communities or associations: The population is native to the Lenca ethnic group so it has inherited many of their practices and customs; such as the manufacture of reed mats, hats and other products from the reed. Historical contribution of the region: Coffee harvesting is the main activity that generates income thru direct and indirect employment in the municipality, as there are 976 coffee producers cultivating 2,824 hectares and producing 39,332 sacks of coffee with an average yield of 9.7 sacks (100 lbs) green coffee / Mz, of which 90% are small producers, being coffee their main source of income and the base of economy of most families. Harvesting practices: The coffee harvest begins in the month of December and ends in May; it’s done manually with cutters from the same village and also all the family members. - Before each cut, guidelines are given to the cutters of how to cut the red cherries and how to move the lots to the collection site, using tumbillas and clean bags to avoid contaminating the coffee. The coffee milling process is wet; it has a pulping machine, fermentation basin and abundant clean water. Fermentation takes place 300 MASL on the lowest part of the estate where the basins are located, the coffee is transported through a pipeline from the farm due to that the access to the farm is very difficult, the road is very steep. Previously it was carried on the back of mules. Drying is done in metallic screens in the lower part of the mountain where the climate is warmer. Transportation of the coffee it is done by mules because there is no access road to the estate. This activity is one of the more difficult due to the topography of the terrain. As the farm start: He is originally from the municipality of La Union, department of Lempira and son of coffee growers. Don Pedro Pineda decided to migrate to Santa Barbara in the mid-1990s and settled in the village of La Cuesta where he made a ten thousand coffee plant nursery and established his first 1.4 hectares, which have been expanding over the years and are now 9.8 hectares. Family Data: The Pineda-Barrientos family has 10 members; the producer Pedro Pineda Hernandez, his wife Delma Leticia Barrientos Barrientos and their 10 children Anibal, Angel, Kelvin, Pedro, Marco Tulio, Mario, Lucia, Sandra, Liliana and Eli. What do you think is the secret of your success? Making the milling process as clean as possible and harvesting the fruit at its best point. How does it feel to be a winner in the Cup of Excellence? I am happy because this means that I have one of the best coffees in the country.

His experience in the Cup of Excellence:

It is the third time I have participated in the Cup of Excellence and it’s the first time that I can earn a place in the electronic auction.