Today, we visited a new kind of coffee company. Coopedota is a coffee cooperative, meaning they have a pool of about 900 coffee farmers they get their coffee beans from. They get the beans from each farm, sort them by quantity, color, and size and then process, roast, and package the coffee to be sent off to other companies. I found this cooperative style company to be very interesting and very helpful to small farmers.
A cooperative like Coopedota can be very advantageous to its members because they are better able to pool their resources and distribute their product. These small farms would usually compete with one another in the region, but with Coopedota, they are able to focus on producing the best quality coffee – rather than worrying about competition. Coopedota also connects these small farms to resources they probably wouldn’t have had before such as transportation and distribution means.
Because the cooperative has so many members, there can be disadvantages. For one, a single farmer may not feel like he or she necessarily has voice or will be able to get their opinion across. To help get around this, Coopedota holds and annual conference where all farmers can attend and vote on important issues. The members can also elect 15 representatives that they feel will support them and their needs and concerns. Another disadvantage could be that the companies do not feel as unique or involved in the coffee process as they should. They do not have direct contact with the people who wind up receiving their product.
The cooperative is vital to the community of Santa Maria de Dota. It probably provides many jobs to the community as well as gives the coffee farms in the region a bigger market and better income than they would receive alone. In particular, Cafe Privilegos provides an opportunity for the younger people in the area. The cafe works with the local high school to give barista training to the students. This sets the students up for a possible job in the future.