In November, we travelled with Aïssatou Diallo, General Manager of Ensambles UK-EU, alongside the teams from Ensambles’ Instituto Bios Terra and Nuup, to explore one of Mexico's most iconic yet complex coffee regions: Los Altos de Chiapas.
What began as a visit to strengthen commercial and educational partnerships with local producers turned into a deeply emotional and eye-opening experience.
This recent trip to Chiapas was a significant way to close the year—a chance to reflect on the opportunities and challenges that coffee-growing communities in this region face. Our focus was on understanding the production hubs of Los Altos de Chiapas more deeply, a region where our collaboration began in 2022. Since then, we have discovered its impressive potential for producing specialty coffee and creating projects that drive positive impact.
The Beauty and Challenges of Los Altos of Chiapas
The journey began in San Cristóbal de las Casas, the most important city in Los Altos de Chiapas, located at over 2,000 meters above sea level. With its charming architecture and magical atmosphere, the city brings to mind Oaxaca city, though it is smaller and less touristy, thus feels, perhaps, more authentic.
From there, we travelled to the municipality of Tenejapa, where, over the past two years, we have been building a network with Indigenous Tseltal and Tsotsil producers.
However, the stark contrast between the beauty of San Cristóbal and the visible poverty in the surrounding villages is striking. Living conditions are challenging: the region faces high levels of poverty. It is important to note that Chiapas is the poorest state in Mexico, with 72% of its population living in moderate or extreme poverty.
Women and children bear the weight of daily responsibilities due to the noticeable absence of men in the community. The youngest, often outside the school system, roam the streets and markets in search of a livelihood. At the same time, alcoholism among men remains a pressing issue that impacts the daily lives of these families.
Coffee farms are located at altitudes ranging from 1,400 to 2,000 meters above sea level, an ideal condition for producing high-quality coffee. However, this location also brings significant challenges: the cold, dry climate, combined with the difficulty of access for the producers themselves, complicates daily work. Poor road conditions make transportation difficult, especially for those without vehicles. Nonetheless, the roads to the San Cristóbal are relatively short, which somewhat eases access and the commercialisation of coffee.
The Role of Women in Coffee-Growing Communities
A highlight of the journey was engaging with the indigenous communities and more specifically, the women producers. During meetings and workshops, these women shared their stories, many of which were marked by hardship.
The women producers of COFEMO, an organisation made up of Tseltal Indigenous women, spoke to us about the double burden they face: in addition to working in the fields, they are also responsible for the household tasks, such as making tortillas, chopping firewood, and caring for their families. Surprisingly, most men acknowledged the women's efforts, but it seems that they do not fully take on their responsibilities to help reduce the workload of their partners.
"Sometimes, you don't need to speak the same language; you can feel the energy, and you can see there is so much suffering and sadness. It was very beautiful, but also very hard to listen to these producers. Each person shared a bit of their story, and both men and women concluded that life in the fields is very difficult, especially for women," says Aïssatou.
These intimate conversations revealed the crucial role women play in these communities and the many responsibilities they take on. As a result, our commitment will focus on promoting projects that strengthen their work and leadership, with the goal of gradually closing the gender inequality gaps in these areas.
Rich Biodiversity and Sustainable Practices
Chiapas is recognized as the leading state in organic coffee production for export, a success that is also reflected in the Los Altos region. Here, producers are known for implementing sustainable and organic production models and systems. Agroforestry and intercropping are complemented by strategies such as live barriers, which protect the soil and preserve biodiversity.
On this trip, we were joined by Osiris Martínez, our Purchasing Coordinator and Field Technician in La Mazateca Oaxaca, who was deeply impressed by these practices. Inspired by what she learned, Osiris committed to bringing some of this knowledge to the Mazateca region to share with producers and enrich their farming processes.
Future Projects
This visit allowed us to assess the potential of Los Altos de Chiapas as a key region for specialty coffee. For the upcoming harvest, the strategy will focus on purchasing coffee exclusively from this region, with the goal of acquiring more than 60 tons of parchment coffee, doubling the amount bought last year. Additionally, strategies will be implemented to involve more women in the projects, strengthening their role as agents of change.
As usual, our aim is to buy coffee at fair prices because we believe it is unjust that regions like Los Altos receive less recognition and value simply because they do not have the same reputation as other more famous coffee areas in Mexico. In many cases, high prices are more tied to exposure and reputation in consuming markets, than to the actual quality of the coffee.
We know that coffees from Chiapas, especially from places like Jaltenango, are well-known, but we want to encourage people to think about this. It's important to recognize that even in lesser-known areas, high-quality coffee is grown and should be treated fairly in the market.
Next year, in collaboration with Nuup, we will launch a pilot project aimed at mitigating the devastating effects of climate change on coffee production and producers’ lives. Mexico faces high-risk agriculture due to its geographic location and diverse climates, which often lead to low yields or total crop losses from droughts, floods, frosts, hurricanes, and other events. Given this situation, there is an urgent need to create funds to address these disasters. This pilot will be implemented not only in Chiapas but also in Veracruz, Guerrero, and Oaxaca.
This trip allowed us to understand the importance of deeply understanding the specific challenges of each region we work in. Although they all belong to the same country, each origin (or region) faces very different difficulties. To create truly impactful projects, it is essential to listen to the communities, understand their concerns and needs, and from there, develop tailored initiatives that effectively address those challenges. This is exactly what Ensambles and IBT have been doing over the years, working closely with the communities to create solutions that truly make a difference.
We hope the stories we share all year long spark a desire in you to join our impactful projects. We want to deeply thank you for supporting us throughout this past year. We look forward to seeing you in 2025, with more coffees, more projects, and new partnerships! Wishing you a wonderful end to the year.
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