Dinero magazine, July 18th 2008



The Colombian coffee keeps conquering the world. But this time is not by coffee farmers from the well know “Eje Cafetero”, Santander or Huila. This time the credit is for the arahuacan aborigines, this community is writing a new managerial page on the mountains called “Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta”, where by decades they were sowing the coffee bean with close relationship with “mother earth”. Step by step the taste and smell of the coffee that grows on their lands were expanding throw all borders. Today, according to the “Consejo Empresarial Colombiano para el Desarrollo Sostenible (CECODES)”, is probably the softest organic coffee in the world is certified by the international SkalControl Union and they export this product to Japan, Canada and Europe, mostly.

“Is qualified between the organic coffees, but also has some other properties that give this coffee special feature: is soft, aromatic and intense, giving it a sweet taste and harmonic perceptions to the senses”, says de organization.

For CECODES, this is because 2 facts. The first one is because is agriculturalist: the production process and crop respect the natural environment without using technological aids that will make weak the community. And the second, spiritual: the coffee is considered the result of the relationship between the man and “mother earth”, so the crop is followed by special rituals and ceremonies in which the aborigines are grateful for the crop.

The reputation of their coffee transforms them from traditional farmers into business mans. One of the main persons in this project is Wilber Mestre, who represents the “Confederación Indígena Tayrona”. He tells us that all this is a surprise for them. He says that they were just sowing the coffee for them and also to commercialize with other communities, but without using chemical products that will “poison the mother earth” and based on that only using natural process given generation to generation.

And this way was born the brand of arahuacan coffee Tiwun, which started to sell in the Colombian market on 2004, as a result from the first business meeting of the organic products, made by the group of green markets from the department of environment, in this meeting the “Confederacion Indígena Tayrona”, signed an agreement with supermarkets Carrefour.

“We have noticed that our coffee is well accepted. But we understood that we have to be careful, because we didn´t want this business to mess our traditions and our aboriginal culture. This was the main preoccupation of the “Mamos” (spiritual chiefs). However, we know how to keep this boundary, and all this resources are invested in our education and to strengthen our traditions. Today 853 arahuacan farmers are dedicated to the sowing and crop of coffee in small production units, this units produce 750.000 kilos yearly, mostly for abroad”. Explains Mestre. CECODES outline the fact that a lot of organizations besides the department of environment are helping the Tiwun coffee to expand in other countries around the world, like the “Federacion Nacional de Cafeteros”, the “Red Colombiana de Productores Comunitarios Ambientales Amigables” (lead by the corporation “Caja de Herramientas”) and the Holland government.

At the same time, thanks to an agreement between the aboriginal community and “Grupo Daabon”, from Santa Marta, 20 containers are being exported yearly to Japan. In the first stage has been planned an exportation for 100 containers during 5 years, for the cost of about 5 million dollars. In the other hand, since 2006 the coffee has been sold in Canada, throw the Cooperative Coffees, a green coffee importer formed by 17 small toasters, they want to give the economic benefits directly to the producers, in which has been called a fair commerce.

In previous days, the “Confederación Indígena Tayrona” was linked to the program MIDAS, which is a program for developing financed by the American agency USAID. Diego Molano, national sub director of the project explained that the idea is to promote the economic growing of this community by the donation of about 50% of the cost on activities of assistance, consultancy and managerial accompaniment. “This contribution also will be an advantage for this community in the production of this coffee, and also to projects oriented to consultancy, innovation, finances, marketing, production, technological process, human resources, managerial accompaniment and access to markets “.Molano Explained.

The arahuacan community has 22 thousand people living over the south face of the mountains called “Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta”. They practice their traditions in deep respect for “mother earth” that saw them born, for the environment, for the rivers and sacred lakes of the Sierra Nevada. All this philosophy is reflected on their coffee production that a lot of people around the world can enjoy now.