CENAPROC (Central Asociados de Productores de Café) stands as a testament to founder Pedro Patana’s vision of community. Out of necessity and hardship, Pedro and his wife put down roots in Bolivia’s remote Yungas region. They were the first in the area to plant coffee alongside other essential crops, steps they took to sustain their family. In 1992, they founded the CENAPROC cooperative with the goal of advancing coffee production among their neighbors.

For decades, Pedro’s dedication has been a driving force behind CENAPROC's success. His focus on quality, organic practices, and resource sharing have been pivotal in improving coffee production in his community. Today, CENAPROC has approximately 50 members and is one of the most recognized cooperatives in Bolivia. The group continues to navigate significant logistical challenges that present a real and present danger to their supply chain and livelihoods.

The Kazoza N’Ikawa cooperative, established in 2012 in the Kayanza region of Burundi, embodies the spirit of its name, which translates from Kirundi to “the future is coffee.” The cooperative consists of over 900 smallholder producers who deliver their coffee cherries for processing at the Mpemba washing station.

The coffees from Mpemba—both washed and natural processed—are among our favorites in all of East Africa and are reflective of the group’s dedication to quality. Kazoza N’Ikawa is part of a cooperative union called COCOCA that helps them prepare their coffee for export and connects the cooperative with international buyers.

ANEI is a cooperative in northern Colombia committed to sustainable, organic coffee farming. Established in 1995 by indigenous Arhuaco leader Aurelio Suárez, ANEI unites over 700 smallholder farmers from diverse indigenous and rural communities in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and Serranía del Perijá regions. The cooperative is dedicated to producing high-quality, organic coffee while preserving the rich cultural heritage of its members. Their initiatives emphasize traditional farming practices that honor the environment and support the economic development and sustainability of their communities.

In 2012, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) launched a project to connect coffee growers in Nariño, Colombia, with the specialty coffee market. Counter Culture joined the advisory board, helping develop new value streams. Before this, most producers sold their coffee for minimal premiums to two large buyers. The project enabled them to form associations and sell directly to quality-focused buyers, creating a new business model in the region. Since then, the groups have grown and further differentiated their coffees through various processing methods and varieties. The Borderlands project stands as an example of international aid driving lasting economic change through community empowerment and the specialty coffee trade.

Montefrio is a coffee farm located in Huila, Colombia, near the Tolima border. Owned by third-generation coffee farmer Hector Rivas, the farm has grown from 4 to 200 hectares, with 70 dedicated to coffee. Hector and his wife are trained veterinarians specializing in cattle and the family manages part of the land as a potrero (cattle farm). Recently, Hector has focused on enhancing the quality and logistics of the farm's operations, which employs around 100 people during peak harvest. Additionally, he maintains 18 hectares of organic coffee production.

Orgánica is a cooperative of 150 smallholder farmers in Cauca dedicated to sustainable coffee production. Over the past two decades, they have become a model for Counter Culture’s sourcing goals. Despite immense pressure from a productivity-driven market and the challenges of smallholder farming, Orgánica has consistently prioritized quality over conventional productivity metrics. They champion organic farming, promote biodiversity, and innovate, creating their own fertilizers and implementing irrigation systems. Their dedication to improving soil health and coffee quality is reflected in the exceptional flavor of their coffee and makes them one of the most inspiring groups we work with.

Carlos Torres Burbano and Angela Patiño Findlay founded Toldopamba Coffee to help producers enhance coffee quality, adopt sustainable farming practices, and tap into premium markets that value both. We first connected with Carlos, a coffee producer's son, through his work on the Borderlands Project. Passionate about farm diversification and coffee processing, Carlos travels across Nariño, linking producers with roasters willing to pay for top-tier coffee. Angela, a licensed Q grader, manages Toldopamba’s quality control lab, tasting each delivery throughout the season. She assembles containers that meet their high standards, reserving the best lots for premium sales. Their lab closes a key feedback loop, helping growers improve quality over time.

Aquiares Estate, one of the oldest and largest coffee farms in Costa Rica, was established in 1890, shortly after the nearby railroad to Limón was completed. In the 1990s, employees were given the opportunity to purchase homes from the farm, leading to the creation of the Aquiares community, which now features its own school, government, and church. This unique relationship has fostered a passionate and committed workforce, whose talent is evident in the quality of Aquiares coffee. The farm also maintains high environmental standards, becoming the first Carbon Neutral certified farm in Costa Rica.

We first connected with Aquiares through our partnership with World Coffee Research. Aquiares operates one of 10 trial plots testing WCR’s F1 Hybrids across three countries. These trials, involving 10,000 hybrid plants propagated at CATIE, an esteemed agricultural research institute in Costa Rica, will help determine which F1 Hybrid varieties best improve productivity, disease tolerance, cup quality, and climate resilience. This research is vital for the future of coffee, and we are proud to support it.

The Muungano Cooperative, located in the South Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, derives its name from the Swahili word for "togetherness." With over 4,000 members, the cooperative produces organic and fair trade coffee. The region’s rich volcanic soils, high altitude, and abundance of Bourbon varieties grown under shade create an ideal environment for high-quality coffee. 

Under the leadership of manager Daniel Habamungu and the elected board, Muungano is deeply committed to sustainability, with a strong focus on gender equity. We’ve witnessed their dedication firsthand during our visits, and they have applied for (and received) more Seeds grants than any other supplier we work with. The cooperative’s ability to thrive under challenging conditions caused by regional instability is a continual source of inspiration for Counter Culture. 

While serving as a professor of Economics, Roberto Jimenez was asked by a friend from an NGO to help improve a grant proposal for a project aimed at teaching coffee growers better processing techniques. When the project received funding, Roberto was invited to lead it. His work took him to Peru, where he learned about coffee processing techniques, which he later introduced to farmers around Loja.

In the years that followed, Roberto helped secure another grant to support exporting operations led by small farmers, a project that eventually evolved into the cooperative Fapecafes. He worked with Fapecafes from 2000 to 2010 before founding Capamaco Trading, a company focused on quality coffee exports. In the past decade, Ecuador has seen a surge of specialty exporters, many of whom offer high prices for premium microlots. What sets Capamaco apart in this competitive market is Roberto’s deep, personal connection with the farmers, rooted in years of collaborative work and shared experience.

Eladio Chamba and his family cultivate 3 hectares of coffee on their farm, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, in southern Ecuador. Planted with excellent varieties and situated at high elevation in a dry climate, the farm benefits from slow cherry maturation, enhancing the coffee’s sweetness. Though the farm has been in production for the past 20 years, it wasn’t until 2015 that Eladio Chamba started focusing on specialty coffee. He found success almost immediately, placing in the “Best of Loja” cupping competition in 2016, where we first encountered his coffee. Since then, we consistently purchase the majority of his harvest. The family also reserves a small lot annually to enter in quality competitions, where they continue to excel.

Alejandro Valiente is a 4th generation coffee farmer who grew up around the coffee business. As a young man, he took an interest in the then new specialty coffee movement. He was inspired by the challenge of improving the quality and sustainability of his family's farm. Alejandro spent several years working with a specialty exporter in Nicaragua to deepen his knowledge of the specialty coffee sector before returning to El Salvador to establish Cafenor. 

In 2020, Cafenor began construction on a wind and solar powered mill in Metapan, which processes his coffee alongside coffee from growers in the surrounding area. The region’s unique cool and breezy microclimate slows cherry maturation, improves coffee storage conditions, and harnesses wind power. This combination results in better quality and a lower environmental impact. 

One of Alejandro’s goals with Cafenor is to create a coffee business his daughters, Monica and Valeria, can be proud to carry into the next generation. They are currently actively involved in the business,  managing export operations and sustainability projects. Cafenor has recently achieved carbon-neutral certification, furthering its commitment to continuous improvement and ensuring its sustainability for future generations.

Founded in 1966, Cooperativa Cuzcachapa was established to enhance the social and economic conditions of its original 56 members through cooperative efforts. Today, the group counts over 1300 members and exports over 15 million pounds of coffee annually, making it one of the largest coops in El Salvador. 

We were introduced to Cuzcachapa through our partnership with Fernando Lima, a member of Cuzcachapa and the owner of Finca Santa Elena, who also serves as the president of the cooperative’s oversight committee. The cooperative supports its members, including Fernando, with competitive financing, technical assistance, and robust export infrastructure. 

In 2017, Ture Waji, Egata Alata, and Fedhesa Wedesa founded Dambi Uddo Agro Industry PLC, a coffee production, processing, and export company named after the coffee-growing town of Odo Shakiso. The business launched in 2018 with a natural-sundried processing site, complete with dry milling machinery, in Suke Quto village. Shortly after, they established an 80-hectare coffee farm in Dambi Uddo. The company later rebranded as Sookoo Coffee, meaning "Gold" in Amharic.

Sookoo Coffee processes their own coffee and uses their farm’s infrastructure to buy and process ripe cherries from local smallholder farmers. We collaborate with Sookoo to source and process coffee from a select group of quality-focused farmers in the village of Okolu. Sookoo adds significant value through pristine processing, excellent transparency, and communication.

Ato Wodessa Yachisi, a seasoned entrepreneur, launched Guji Highlands in 2012 after a decade of success in the coffee industry. He founded the company with family members. Their estate spans 150 hectares, cultivating coffee under a biodiverse, shade-grown canopy, mirroring the natural conditions where coffee first grew wild in Ethiopia. They also runs an outgrower program, processing cherries from nearby farmers. Recently, they established 13 additional washing stations across Guji that adhere to the strictest cherry selection and processing standards. With their own state-of-the-art dry mill near Addis Ababa, Guji Highlands’ vertical integration ensures rigorous quality control from farm to export and consistently delivers top-tier coffee at scale.

The Jabanto group was established in 2017, following changes in Ethiopian coffee policy that allowed smallholder farmers to directly export and sell their coffees. Since then, Jabanto has expanded to over 90 members, with two main groups based in the Yirgacheffe and Kochere districts of the Gedeo region. The group benefits from the support of G Broad Trading, a small exporter founded by our friend, Getu Bekele. G Broad assists Jabanto members with the complex processes of obtaining export licenses, arranging logistics, and maintaining organic certification.

In the Gedeofa language, "Jabanto" means "stronger together," and the group's members embody this by working closely together in all aspects of processing and exporting their coffee.

Kata Muduga is a multifaceted cooperative union made up of 85 member cooperatives, 48 of which specialize in coffee production. Many of their coffee cooperatives emerged from a famously successful economic development project implemented by the non-profit Technoserve in 2009. Prior to this project, coffee from the Jimma zone was often considered low quality and sold for low prices. Technoserve's project significantly improved this situation by organizing farmers into cooperatives, investing in centralized processing facilities, and providing training in quality practices. This led to a dramatic improvement in coffee quality within the first season, and over the years, key cooperatives like Duromina, Nano Challa, and Yukro have become renowned names in Ethiopian specialty coffee.

The Kata Muduga cooperative union was established in 2016 to coordinate the export operations for its members. It is staffed by several former employees of the Technoserve project and helps members access to more competitive financing and leverage their collective buying power to purchase agricultural inputs at scale. 

The Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU) is a collection of 28 cooperatives serving over 45,000 coffee farmers in the Gedeo region of Ethiopia. Though YCFCU is the third-largest union in the country, Yirgacheffe is arguably the most well-known Ethiopian coffee growing region to consumers worldwide. The union’s primary role is coordinating financing, logistical support, and market access to its members. Coffee production is the main source of income for the region’s population and YCFCU provides essential support for Gedeo’s farmers. 

The Asociación Sostenible de Café de Guatemala (ASDECAFE) is a second-tier coffee organization founded in 2013. It represents over 1,000 members from eight cooperatives across the Huehuetenango and El Quiché departments. The organization is dedicated to environmental protection, fair profit distribution, and business transparency. They have built strong customer loyalty through their high-quality standards and organic practices, a reflection of their deep commitment to both people and the planet.

The Coordinadora de Organizaciones de Desarrollo de Concepción Huista (CODECH) was founded in 2000 with the mission to purchase and export coffee from small farms surrounding the town of Concepción Huista. Initially, like many cooperatives of that era, CODECH exported generic blends consisting of hundreds of growers’ coffees. However, in 2009, the cooperative began a significant transformation with the support of Atlas Coffee Importers. This collaboration introduced rigorous quality control measures and enabled CODECH to distinguish and market higher-quality community and single-farm lots for premium prices.

CODECH’s success is rooted in their commitment to quality, transparent sourcing, and strong grower relationships, which have established them as a leading cooperative in the region.

Born and raised among coffee plantations, Max Pérez was acutely aware of both the risks and potential within the coffee industry. Driven by a desire to “make the coffee dreams come true,” he founded Finca La Hermosa in 2010 with the support of his family. Situated on the slopes of the Acatenango volcano, his coffee farm benefits from fertile volcanic soils that nurture a diverse range of coffee varieties. Max remains committed to refining the farm's organic management practices and exploring innovative processing methods, ensuring that Finca La Hermosa continues to thrive and produce exceptional coffee.