Guatemala / Ija'tz Natural

Nestled in the foothills of the volcanic Lake Atitlán, this natural process coffee is produced by the Ija’tz cooperative under the shade of native plants at 1500 to 1900 MASL. Taking their name from the word for “seed” in Kaqchikel, the co-op chose this name as a symbol of life and regeneration and their mission is to protect the environment using innovative agricultural processes.

After tropical storm Agatha hit Guatemala in 2010, massive flooding and landslides destroyed the cooperative’s seed bank, all documented history of their work, and their office. They found the resiliency to carry on and eventually partnered with De La Gente in 2015, who provided training on new production techniques. This partnership allowed them to combat crop losses due to coffee leaf rust and to build worm composting beds to increase yield, among other improvements in infrastructure.

In addition to growing coffee, Ija’tz has a history of helping the community through social projects such as a community nutrition program and a sustainable water management system that helps to improve water flow during the rainy season.

This coffee is extra special to us because green buyer Amy got to visit the co-op as part of De La Gente’s cultural exchange program. Amy was able to spend all day with a local woman who taught her how to make the Guatemalan New Year’s dish from scratch and showed her the coffee production process in all stages from bringing the cherries down on mules from the mountains, hulling them and drying them on the roof, and then roasting them on the fire in the living room before grinding them by hand with a huge mortar and pestle. What a beautiful experience!

TASTING NOTES:  DRIED FRUIT /// MARSHMALLOW /// CACAO