We are proud to introduce you to our first social project coffee, Nicaragua La Esperanza. With Nicaragua La Esperanza, we have established a direct and closer relationship with the farm owners, Henry and Gaby Hueck. With this coffee, we are purposefully and directly contributing to the ecosystem of the coffee community.
You may remember our Limited Edition roast of Nicaragua La Esperanza in December 2020. If you managed to try this coffee, we want you to know that you made a difference to the lives of the coffee producers. The proceeds for that Limited Edition was given to fund Hurricane Iota relief. Thank you so much for your support!
From the very beginning, Perk’s commitment to ethically, sustainably sourced coffee has been at the core of what we do. We have always dealt with coffee farms where workers are paid higher than Fairtrade prices and whose farm practices are ethical and sustainable. Now, we’re proud to be taking our commitment one step further by actively seeking out and directly supporting farms whose practices reflect what we are passionate about. To name a few, we care deeply about:
- Fair compensation
- Employee benefits
- Women’s empowerment and inclusion in the coffee industry; and
- Farm management systems that protect the natural wildlife habitat.
We are excited to be working with Henry and Gaby Hueck at La Esperanza and are now adding Nicaragua La Esperanza to our regular coffee line up. The proceeds on sales of this coffee will be used for various projects in Nicaragua.
The Community
The La Esperanza farm is owned by Henry and Gaby Hueck whom we had the pleasure of meeting via zoom. We wanted to understand more about the farm and the community surrounding it. We are particularly passionate about education and gender equality, which is why we are thrilled to partner with the Huecks, who resonate with us on these aspects.
Through the sale of Nicaragua La Esperanza coffee, the Huecks are able to offer a wide range of employee benefits, from free housing, to clean and easily available drinking water, three prepared meals a day, medical care and free schooling and computers for the children of workers and neighbouring communities.
All their farms practice non-discrimination, with programs in place to support female employees. Employees are paid regularly and reliably with a trained group of pickers chosen to pick this particular bean given double the minimal wage thereby rewarding their skill level and care for the environment. As a result, the Huecks have a high retention rate of employees, some of which have worked and lived on the farms for over 20 years.
Together with the Huecks, we are creating an environment that betters both the farm and their people, and in so doing proves that coffee farming can be productive in a sustainable way that benefits the entire community with an improved quality of life.
While we continue to buy ethical and sustainable coffee for all our beans, the proceeds from Nicaragua La Esperanza will directly support key initiatives together with the farm owners.
Perk’s Projects with Nicaragua La Esperanza
Hurricane Iota Relief
While we had planned to launch this coffee in 2021, there was an urgent call for relief in December 2020. Hurricane Iota had devastated many parts of Nicaragua and Central America, causing overwhelming destruction of property, livestock, farms and the unimaginable – loss of lives. Closer to home, the bridge leading towards the coffee farm was destroyed.
Because of this, we brought forward our preparations to do a Limited Edition launch of Nicaragua La Esperanza and our first Limited Edition Nicaragua La Esperanza was roasted in December 2020.
With these proceeds, we supported funding of urgent needs for families. We were able to help raise money to buy basic supplies like canned food, water, medicine, bedding, and clothing for both adults and children. If you had the pleasure of tasting our Limited Edition Nicaragua La Esperanza, you made a difference! Thank you for your support.
Children Play Facilities
Following on from disaster relief, our current investment is in the younger generation. We believe in learning through play and because many of us here at Perk have families, we can see the benefits of it first hand. In interacting with the Huecks, we realized that there was a gap in this aspect of their community building. So, with them, we have begun building play facilities for the children and are excited to see how this initiative helps improve the lives of their workers and their families.
The Coffee
La Esperanza means “The Hope” in Spanish. It is a fully washed Strictly Hard Bean (SHB) grade coffee grown by one of the most innovative coffee producers based in Jinotega, North Central Nicaragua. SHB coffees are only grown at altitudes above 1350 meters*.
First, the carefully hand-picked coffee cherries are delivered to the farm’s wet mill for weighing and de-pulping. After a controlled fermentation period of about 18 hours, the coffee is washed and prepared for sun drying. It is then dried on raised beds for a couple of weeks to reach their optimal moisture level. Throughout the entire process, from farm to end product, the dedication and passion by pickers, processors and the entire team, guarantees an exceptional cup quality.
Nicaragua La Esperanza, a mainstay in Perk’s Coffee Line Up
We are thrilled to announce that Nicaragua La Esperanza has now joined the ranks of our mainstay coffees. With each order of this special coffee, we will continue to give a portion of proceeds to key initiatives identified together with the farm owners. Our hope is to eventually do origin trips to the farms and see the projects in person. This will take us to a new level of transparency and “fair trade.”
Thank you for supporting this initiative. Whenever you order a bag of Nicaragua La Esperanza, know that you are also making a difference.
References:
* Source: https://espressocoffeeguide.com/coffee-terms/strictly-high-grown-coffee/