Before a cup of coffee can even be consumed, it must go through a lengthy process of preparation. This means that the supply chain for coffee is very complex. Throughout this trip, as we went on numerous coffee plantation tours, we learned all about the complexity of the supply chain and about how important “making”…

Back home in Pennsylvania, Dole is my family’s favorite banana producer. My mom only ever comes home with Dole bananas after a trip to the grocery store. So, today, when we had to have an extremely early start just to travel to one of the Dole plantations in Costa Rica, I knew it would be…

Costa Rica began exporting coffee in 1820, at first just to Panama but now, it is being exported to many countries across the globe. In present day, approximately 50% of Costa Rica’s coffee is now exported to the United States. Coffee used to be a major component of Costa Rica’s GDP but accounts for only…

Over the course of three days, I learned quite a lot about the Quakers in the Monteverde region of Costa Rica. The first group of American Quakers arrived in 1951 and because they were from Alabama, they realized the importance of preserving the biodiversity of the region. When you are not from a certain place,…

Sustainable farming has never been an easy task for there are limitless details to take into account and Don Guillermo, a Tico farmer in Monteverde, showed us some of these challenges today. Not only does Don practice sustainable farming at the Life Monteverde farm, but he also spends his time educating other farmers, students, etc….

During our travels today, we saw several different, extremely diverse parts of Costa Rica. From the Central Coast, we went west until we reached the Pacific coast. Then, we headed north and up the side of a very steep mountain until we reached our hotel, El Establo. Overall, the trip took around four hours and…

As you are riding the train into San José, you can hear the intense rush hour traffic complimented by plenty of angry honking and peddlers trying to sell their products. At first glance as you leave the train station, San José looks like any other city; however, as you spend more time in the city,…

Costa Rican coffee has substantial ties to the country’s culture and was first introduced around the end of the 1700s. Two companies, Café Britt and Doka Estate, have since become examples of the strong standard of quality that Costa Rica demands from its coffee producers. Café Britt is a world-renowned gourmet coffee brand and Doka…

Costa Rica’s vibrant history dates back to the beginning of habitation of the land by multiple, unique indigenous tribes. Today, we learned of the multiple ways that Ticos have worked to preserve this rich history and culture. Teachers like our guest lecturer, Dr. Laura Ramirez, work to preserve the history by teaching and raising awareness…

I began this trip with the assumption that I was some kind of Costa Rican expert simply because I have traveled there before. Honestly, I could not have been farther from the truth. Although Costa Rica is a small country with approximately 5 million people, it is incredibly vibrant and diverse across the provinces. During…

Hi, my name is Gracie Turk and I am immensely excited to be traveling soon to Costa Rica to study Supply Chain Management in the banana and coffee industries! After just finishing my freshman year, I have decided to major in Accounting and Business Information Systems with a Certificate in International Business. I wanted to…