The sweet pages of coffee

Coffee is, nowadays, one of the most popular beverages in the world. Its aroma, flavour and the intoxicating energy it provides have made it a daily companion. The whole world wants coffee; in the mornings millions of people drink it to start their day, and yet few people imagine where the brown bean comes from and how much it had to go through to reach their table. A little known side of the coffee trade (and of almost every agricultural product) is the imbalance in the value chain, where the farmer is the one who earns the least, generating what we call unfair trade or exploitation.

Today I am going to tell you a different, perhaps happy, story about coffee and a magical town called San Juan de Cutervo in Cajamarca, Peru. 

Commissioned by Sarah's Rural Library Fund, and in collaboration with the Rural Libraries Network, I visited this small, beautiful and remote village. With the rural librarians of the area I was able to learn about their coffee production system and the dynamics of the village around their main source of income.

Don Anibal told me that, at 77 years of age, he lives alone and manages his coffee farm and the books of the Rural Libraries Network. Growing coffee has not made him rich, but he can live peacefully and also have time to share the knowledge of the books. Aníbal says that it is common for students from the San Juan School to visit him to ask for help with their homework and books.

Jorge Carrasco, a teacher at the local school, is also a coffee producer and librarian. He comments that the ecosystem of the zone has welcomed the coffee, which is of good quality, with exalted aromas and flavours.

According to barista experts, it is a very good coffee that is also qualified as organic, since the use of chemical substances in the process is almost nonexistent. Specifically, the origin of this precious bean can be considered happy in San Juan de Cutervo.

And so, between books and coffee, these librarians and farmers share the wisdom that the ancient Cajamarcans told, sitting around the campfire.

Jorge Camacho