About the farm:
Finca Jauja is located on the outskirts of the famed town of Antigua. The farm is owned by the Herrera Family and operated by the Zelaya family, who has been growing coffee for over 100 years and four generations, and are passionately committed to both quality and sustainability.
The Zelaya family’s farms are scrupulously well-managed; right from the careful selection of varietals planted, to the close supervision of the dry and wet mills. Coffee on all of the farms that they own or manage is shade grown, which protects the plants from direct sunlight, maintains soil health, and provides an important habitat for birds and insect life. The family’s mills are also eco-friendly and feature sedimentation tanks that prevent pollution of the local river systems.
Every cherry on the farm is hand-picked and then sorted by hand before being approved by the foreman for delivery to the wet mill. The farm also hires ‘special pickers’ who have demonstrated particular dexterity and are selected to hand harvest some of the farms’ microlots using impressive attention to detail. These employees can receive more than double the minimum daily wage through picking coffee at the farm.
Many workers on the farms have been with them for generations and are treated as part of the family. In 2010, Ricardo Zelaya created a scholarship program to help workers pay for the education of their children, and the program is now managed by his daughter, Bel, who has a degree in Special Education.