Mexico Juba Guerrero

About This Coffee

Finally, one of our most popular coffees is back with a new harvest. Last year there was a crop failure with many of the producers, and we couldn't buy it, but now it is back, and we are genuinely happy to be working with these producers again. Since so many have taken the coffee to their hearts, and palates, here is some extra information about the coffee: Juba means mountain in Mepha, which is the language used by the producers - mainly women - who produce the coffee. The coffee is part of a long-term project aimed at strengthening coffee's position in the region; producers who participate are paid three times more than the market price. The coffee is balanced in character with a clear character of nuts, it has a soft fruitiness, fine chocolate tones and a pronounced fullness. Incredibly good in all types of brewing methods. BACKGROUND: The state of Guerrero is one of Mexico's 16 coffee-producing states, and borders Oaxaca and Puebla. In Guerrero, 80% of the terrain is mountainous and the main economic activity is agriculture. Coffee was first introduced by the Spaniards along the coast of Sierra de Atoyac, and most of the labor to pick coffee was brought from the poorest areas of Guerrero - a region called Montaña Alta. These workers planted coffee in their backyards and in this way coffee slowly began to become an important plant. The region is now characterized by the production of shade-grown and organically grown coffee. Guerrero produces almost only berry-dried coffee, which is rare in Mexico, where more than 90% of the total exported coffee is processed through the washed method. In the region, poverty is widespread, which has meant that many have moved to the northern states of Mexico, as well as to the USA. The drug trade in the region is extensive, which has meant that Guerrero has a damaged self-image and a bad reputation internationally. Because of this, few companies have invested in the area when it comes to purchasing coffee. Almost 100% of Guerrero coffee is purchased, directly or indirectly, by a single private company, which then sells on to a large international buyer. This monopoly has set very low prices for coffee and a general lack of interest in growing it. We buy Juba Guerrero coffee through a company called Ensambles Cafes Mexicanos that started a project focused on specialty coffee in this area back in 2017, a project led by Miguel Guevara, an agronomist who originally comes from Montaña Alta. Miguel has worked with producers to improve quality and help reach different markets. Miguel provides training on selective picking, selection and drying. He also supports the project by obtaining regional funds to finance a nursery, local warehouses, build drying beds etc. The first producers to join this initiative were all women. Many women in this region have the power to make decisions because their husbands live elsewhere for work. These women call themselves “Evas”, referring to the first woman Eva. They decided to call the project JUBA, which means mountain in their indigenous language for Mephaa. Dissatisfaction with low prices has enabled this project to grow rapidly and has increased from 5 to now 33 producers in 5 years. One of the cornerstones of specialty coffee at origin is quality control and separation between different coffee lots. Running labs in the coffee areas is key to careful quality control and direct feedback to the growers. In 2022, Ensambles Cafes Mexicanos went from 1 to 3 laboratories in Montaña alta. A successful move this year was to have a space on local radio to announce the company's presence and explain the important work they do. Since the messages were spoken in both Spanish and Mephaa, many producers heard it and came to visit the labs to have their samples assessed. The result is that they now get coffee from twice as many municipalities as last year.