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The Who of the SRSCI begins with the farmers, two of which also operate micro-beneficios and roast their own coffee at the present time.

Luis Alejandro Garcia, Finca Santa Marta:  Finca Santa Marta has 7 hectares in production of coffee.  The name of its coffee is Cafe Santa Marta.  The family through Luis Alejandro runs the coffee shop El Colibri at the mouth of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve.  Here is the link to Cafe Santa Marta:  http://www.cafesantamarta.com/ The founder of the farm is Luis Alejandro’s father, Alejandro Garcia Villalobos.  The farm had its challenges in the late 90’s and early 00’s as a result of the falling coffee market and the inability of the Cooperative, Coopeldos, R.L. located in El Dos, Costa Rica to find new sustainable markets.

With the vision of Luis Alejandro and his family, the farm was completely overhauled.  The family vertically integrated the processes from seed to cup using sustainable farming practices and then deliver coffee to the end user.  The entire family is involved in the operation with brother, Alexis Garcia Brenes in charge of farm production, brother, Luis Fernando Garcia Villalobos in charge of processing including wet-milling, dry-milling and roasting, and sister, Guiselle Garcia Villalobos in charge of various administration aspects of the operation.  Don Alejandro still works the farm everyday and participates with his wife and children in the operation of the new vision of coffee at Finca Santa Marta.  Cafe Santa Marta is named after Luis Alejandro’s mother, Marta Villalobos Villalobos who greets every visitor of coffee tours to the farm with a warm smile, a cup of Cafe Santa Marta, and a home cooked empanada or fresh baked bread.

The farm has been recently recognized by the Food and Agricultural Administration of the United Nations for its innovative initiatives in sustainable production of coffee.

Kenneth J. Lander, Finca Flor Mar:   Finca Flor Mar is a farm of 40 hectares, with 4 hectares in production of coffee.  Finca Flor Mar is also using sustainable farming practices.  As with Finca Santa Marta, Finca Flor Mar houses a “beneficio” which is spanish for coffee processing plant, processing the fruit into green beans ready to roast.   Finca Flor Mar also roasts coffee and is currently marketing its coffee via social marketing on the internet.  Finca Flor Mar provides coffee to a new community coffee house in Monteverde, The Common Cup.  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Monteverde-Costa-Rica/The-Common-Cup-Community-Coffee-House-and-Roastery/400967337008?ref=ts

Jorge Fonseca Mata, Finca Fonseca:  Jorge Fonseca Mata is a coffee farmer, cattleman, and most important the patriarch of the Fonseca family.  Jorge is married to Damaris Gonzalez Mendez.  He has two children who are in their late 20’s, Jorge Enrique Fonseca Gonzalez and Marianela Fonseca Gonzalez who continue to support and help the Fonseca Family in the production of coffee. The name of the farm is Finca Fonseca.  Finca Fonseca is 153 hectares with 12 hectares in production of coffee.  The farm is planted with various varieties of Arabica Coffee including Catura and Costa Rica 95.  The farm is the birthplace of the Abangares River.  Finca Fonseca is the largest coffee plantation in San Rafael.  Jorge and his family have been in the business of production of coffee over 30 years.  The Fonseca Family is a joint venture partner with Finca Flor Mar and Finca Santa Marta in the co-production of coffee fruit (starting with last year’s crop), with Café Santa Marta and Finca Flor Mar processing the fruit into green bean.

Forrest Graves, Jumpingoat Coffee Roasters:  Forrest, a known expert in the coffee industry in the field of social media and marketing, and successful coffee roaster, is partnering with the SRSCI with a common vision:  to provide the consumer in the marketplace more opportunities to have a sustainable relationships with a coffee farming community.  He has been on the ground at origin in San Rafael, and is ready to lead the industry in this new innovative initiative.  www.jumpingoat.com

The Future Farmers:  The key element is the farmers that are not participating with the SRSCI yet.  With this initiative, the goal is to add at least 23 hectares to the initiative every year until all of San Rafael coffee production is in direct relationship with you, the consumer of the cup!

You! But, most importantly, you are the key to the SRSCI! Without you sharing a cup of coffee with the farmer of San Rafael, the SRSCI is not sustainable!