The Starry family originates from the Czech Republic. They settled in Guatemala four generations ago, and today produce coffee. Christian Starry and his wife Julia belong to the family’s fourth generation of coffee farmers. Christian Senior and Christian Junior are both members of the Starry family. Christian Sr. manages the farm and Christian Jr. manages the washing station and marketing.
The family planted coffee trees on the land when they bought it in 1995. Their son joined them in 2013. They built their own washing station in 2016. The farm was renamed El Xalum in honour of its many shade trees.