Jaime Sanchez:
The coffee lots marketed under Jaime's
name are the result of collaboration
between him and his father, Fernando
Sanchez. Both are smallholder growers
based in the small town of Cañalitos,
located in the mountains south of Casillas
in the Jalapa state.
Fernando grew up with his father and his
paternal grandmother, Matea Gonzalez,
who lived a life of subsistence farming with
a focus on corn, beans, and coffee. In 1970,
their farm covered only about 1.2 hectares
of land. Fernando married Elva Villalta in
1978, and they had one daughter and two
sons, including Jaime. During this period,
Fernando dedicated himself to expanding
their farm, and from 1995 onward, coffee
became their primary source of income.
In 2000, Jaime graduated as an
agricultural engineer and returned to the
family farm to support their coffee
production. He improved productivity by
implementing soil conservation
techniques, managing water resources,
and promoting sustainable agriculture.
This included reducing pesticide use,
increasing shade, and integrating crops
such as banana, macadamia, and
avocado.
Despite the challenges they face, Jaime and his family have continued to sell
their cherries to local cooperatives or intermediaries for cash rather than
investing in post-harvest processing techniques. However, in 2017, Jaime's son,
also named Fernando, purchased an ecopulper to begin processing their coffee
themselves. They sent various lots for cupping at local laboratories and received
positive feedback, which motivated them to improve both their harvest and
post-harvest techniques to achieve the highest quality coffee possible.
Despite their efforts, they have struggled to access the international market.
They had previously sold to a European buyer, but since then, they have only
been able to sell locally. This recent sale is also Semilla's first purchase
from the Sanchez family, whom we hope to continue supporting.
As Jaime expressed:
“We must search for clients who pay us well for our coffees so
that we can generate profits. The effects of climate change,
coffee diseases, and the high costs of production mean that
during major harvests, we are often left stranded.”
Total farm size: 3,5 hectares
Pricing structure:
- Regional farmgate price: 1,800 Quetzal/quintal parchment
- Las Flores farmgate price: 2,600 Quetzal/quintal parchment
- FOB price: $5.58 USD/lb
Details:
- Variety: Arabica Field Blend, 100% Arabica
- Altitude: 1885m
- Processing: honey
- Notes: kumquat, cashew nuts, cacao.
- Quantity: 250 gr or 500 gr beans
- Our coffee bags are 100% recyclable, produced CO2-neutral and can be disposed of in the plastic waste (in Belgium: PMD-bag). Also check out our CoffeeVac containers, which we sell to shop without the use of packaging from us. When using this system (only possible for pick up- or personal delivery-orders), you earn a discount (saver-system) of 1€ per ordered 250gr/150gr coffee beans.
- These beans are roasted on 100% green energy (solar + wind).
Foremost, we choose to supply beans. After 15 minutes the aromas of ground coffee are gone. We can grind on request, but it is not something we offer as standard. More info you can find on our blog!
On our website you can discover our range of manual and electric grinders .
