Over the past two weeks, I’ve seen a lot of Costa Rica and learned a lot about the supply chain. The definition of Design and launching can be narrowed to innovating. Often innovation is found at every level. When we look at the coffee producers or suppliers in the supply chain they innovate by using…

We visited one of Doles banana Plantations today. Looking at banana and coffees way of production and supply chain is very different. When we look at coffees supply chain they have various links. It starts for coffee with the Suppliers or producer of the coffee cherries. It then goes to those who roast and market…

Icafe is a government associated institute that helps in research and development of coffee for Costa Rica. They ensure the waters from rivers are consistent with government standards and help develop ways to fight diseases that affect coffee. Icafe receives most of its funding from a small tax on coffee exports. Everyone whether they use…

While in Monteverde one can’t hope but think about how the Quakers who came in the 1950s affected the land and how foreign investors to this day continue to change Costa Rica. For one at least recently the Quakers have worked to conserve Costa Rica. At Life in Monte Verde, they are trying to make…

Today we traveled to Monteverde. Where we met Jerson and Don Guillermo. They run a farm and educational plant on Monteverde. They help educate really smart and humble students, like me.  We took a tour with Jerson, where he told us all about the challenges farmers like him face. One major challenge is climate change….

Today, as we drove through the mountains and the ocean I’m reminded of what I thought of Costa Rica prior to arrival.  As we initially drove out of Heredia we saw a lot of what I now think of as Costa Rica. A well developed high way, lots of traffic. I might be mistaken to…

Today we traveled to San José. While there we had a chance to look at the city and how it has been influenced by the history and culture of Costa Rica. Especially considering the past production of coffee and bananas. First, the most glaring feature of San José is how its streets are organized, and…

Today we visited both Café Britt and Doka. Both have different places among the supply chain and have very different target markets for their products. While Doka is mostly a supplier for companies that roast coffee, Café Britt roasts coffee but does not produce the raw cherries, making them a manufacturer/distributor. Both are successful in…

Today we learned a little more about the culture in Costa Rica. This morning Dr. Laura Ramirez came to give us a lecture on the history and important cultural aspects in Costa Rica. Dr. Ramirez first went over a bit of the history of Costa Rica. After the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492 and…

Today was our first day in Costa Rica. We arrived last night and met our host families. Who we will be staying with for the next two weeks. After a good night’s rest, we really got to explore. Starting off with Breakfast. Our host mom made us toast and eggs. I was surprised just how…

¡Hola! me llamo Andrés Buonanno. This week I will be adventuring in Costa Rica for the Plus 3 program for the University of Pittsburgh. As a Mechanical Engineering student I am excited to learn the various processes that allow an industry of coffee and bananas to flourish. Especially keeping in mind that Costa Rica is…