ATTICUS - El Salvador

Alejandro Valiente's family has grown coffee in the Metapan region of northwest El Salvador for four generations. When he took control of the wet mill in 2010, he started experimenting with processing techniques, determined to showcase the potential of coffees from this region and to make his mark on the rising specialty community. After submitting his first Pacamara to a pioneering new project organised by the Millennium Fund, Alejandro quickly gained attention and plaudits. He was then invited to be involved in agronomy projects in Nicaragua and Guatemala and spent some years sharing his wealth of knowledge there. However, in 2017 he felt the call to return to his roots and apply all that he learned to his native land and community at home. It was on his return to the family farm that the Socios de Cosecha (Harvest Partners) project was born. Alejandro assumed a leadership role within his community, helping local producers to develop improved processing techniques.

The infrastructure of the mill was upgraded with the construction of three-tiered drying beds that are specially designed to blend with natural landscape. A purpose-built cupping lab was established on site so that the local farmers can sample and assess their own coffee. The project now works directly with 67 small producers with farms of 1-3ha for 100% traceability on each micro-lot. A fully solar-powered dry mill has been established on site to save on milling costs and to be fully vertically integrated in the supply chain. The team has been a pioneer in sustainable practices and it's inspiring to see how seamlessly their practices work with the environment to produce great coffees.