Kekchi

Created in 1976, in 2021 FEDECOVERA brings together 42 cooperatives, 21 associations and more than 30,000 producer families. The cooperative was founded around coffee, but has since diversified to include other agricultural products such as cardamom, cocoa, tea, pepper and turmeric.

Of the 42 cooperatives, 24 produce coffee, 3 of them organically and many more are in the process of obtaining certification. In 1996, FEDECOVERA began carrying out reforestation projects by creating nurseries, and every year over 4 million seedlings are grown. The coffees grow under the shade of tropical forests (endemic and planted at altitudes of between 1,320 and 1,500 metres). The varieties grown are caturra, catuai, bourbon, anacafé 14, sarchimor, etc.

On the social front, the cooperative provides each farmer member with the basics, such as technical assistance with farming practices through training courses and workshops, access to credit, the possibility of investing in the cooperative, medical assistance, etc. A large number of cooperatives are planning to make the transition to organic farming, and in the future many producers want to develop the natural and honey processes.