In 2006 Planadas, and the south of Tolima in general, went through the bloodiest of an era that whipped the tranquility of the entire country. That same year, then-president Álvaro Uribe declared the municipality a “strategic recovery zone” due to the total power that the insurgency wielded.
The influence of the FARC’s 21st Front in the area was absolute and, at the same time, the anxiety increased, as members of the Dipol, the Sijin and the Army began to carry out covert operations, one of the basic strategies of the counterinsurgency fight. .
Coffee landscape in San Miguel de Planadas.
Camilo Jiménez / Supplied Astrid Medina / THE NEW DAY.
In the midst of this turbulent environment there was good news that, for many, opened a path of change: Edith Enciso, from the La Isla farm in the district of Gaitania de Planadas, won the ‘Cup of Excellence’ and the recognition of producing one of the best specialty coffees in Colombia.
Tolima coffee is today known throughout the world for its quality in the cup, which is due to the attributes of its volcanic soils, with characteristics that are highly valued among experts: fruity notes, apricot, peach, among others, which make it much more aromatic.
(Enter the special: United Colombia, where differences can live)
The great advantage of the department is that organic coffee is produced throughout the year, a feature that differentiates it from competitors such as the Sierra Nevada, which harvests only between October and March. Grown mostly on small plots, 96.7% of coffee growers in Tolima are small producers of less than five hectares.
Social change
The department is the third largest producer nationwide, with a market share of 12.8% in 108,141 hectares of different varieties in 38 of the 47 municipalities, according to the National Federation of Coffee Growers. However, coffee in the south has not only been aid and a driver of development, it has also become a symbol of change: “A few years ago, when coffee came in, the poppy came out,” says Ana Jesús Valderrama, a coffee grower from the Vereda Canoas Copete de Ataco and producer of Cafimujer.
There are hundreds of examples of associations, cooperatives, groups, neighbors and friends who see coffee as an opportunity for improvement in this region. “In the south of Tolima, coffee has been a symbol. It occurs among coffee growers, but also among victims, indigenous communities, and ex-combatants. With coffee, the community was integrated, and that is an immense contribution to the construction of peace,” said Carlos Guillermo Ospina, Truth Commissioner who has worked for years in this area of Tolima.
Foreign coffee marketers visit Gaitania.
Camilo Jiménez / Supplied Astrid Medina / THE NEW DAY.
ASOPEP is one of the most important associations of coffee producers in southern Tolima. It currently has 349 members, of which 100 are dedicated to cocoa and 249 to coffee production in Planadas, Ataco and Huila. Among the activities they carry out, the headquarters of the association works as a collection center for coffee and cocoa. 1,200,000 kilos of coffee circulate every year. They also act as a bridge to allow the product to be exported: ASOPEP negotiates with the client abroad, sends the coffee to the exporting company and thus closes the deal.
The brand of coffee ‘Third Agreement’, produced by former FARC members of the El Oso Territorial Space for Training and Reincorporation (ETCR), in Planadas, is accompanied by ASOPEP. The association sells them organic coffee and the reincorporated roast it and market it. The first peace agreement was reached in 1996 between the Nasa indigenous people and the FARC, the second was between the National Government and the FARC in 2016. Now, the “third agreement” seeks to be a symbol of the total overcoming of violence.
Reincorporated are part of several production units in the old ETCR of El Oso, in Planadas.
Camilo Jiménez / Supplied Astrid Medina / THE NEW DAY.
“Work is now easier. Before, people were afraid to come to this region because of the violence. The foreigners were afraid to come, but now they do it even by land to get to know. There is more trade and things are looking better: you know that coffee makes friends and brings progress”, said Jorge Rojas, physical analyst at ASOPEP. Created 8 years ago, today the association has an 8-hectare farm where they offer coffee growers drying services, a cocoa storage center and a coffee school for children is being built.
Coffee associations have become an option for community cooperation to consolidate the growth of this important economic subsector. It has given many of the small producers the possibility of technifying production and marketing at high levels. Groups of coffee growers such as Acedga or ASOTBILBAO in Gaitania, Asocalarama or the Corporación Agropecuaria Café Hermosas, in Chaparral, Ascafur Coffee Association in Rioblanco, are models of success and overcoming complex stages.
CAMILO JIMENEZ*
The new day
United Colombia
0 Comments:
Publicar un comentario