Intimpa Organic

Supply Chain

Nehipe community – Cultivar – Keen Coffee

Collaboration

First things first. One of the reasons that we adore this lot is the fact that these coffee bushes have their own personal bodyguards. The evergreen Intimpa trees for which this coffee is named grow in the surrounding area and offer natural protection to the coffee bushes. The Intimpa trees are a protected species themselves and reside in the Tabaconas-Namballe sanctuary part of the Cloud Forest in the Andes.

The valley through which the Chinchipe river runs and where this direct-trade coffee is cultivated is surrounded by 4,000m high mountain tops that are home to Páramo, a unique ecosystem filled with tropical mountain forest and (endangered) wildlife. This one-of-a-kind ecosystem creates the perfect circumstances for coffee production.

The southernmost part of the Páramo ecosystem is protected by the farmers that live in the area. They only cultivate coffee on previously unforested land, never use any chemical fertilisers or herbicides and pesticides, and all of them agreed to not cut any native trees. In addition, the sanctuary contributes to the protection of the watersheds, the maintenance of the quality and quantity of the water resources in the area and the development of the surrounding communities.

For us, this is a new direct-trade connection. Together with Cultivar and the farmers we will work on cultivating sustainable, high-quality coffee in the years to come. We can’t wait to see what other gems this area will produce. We’re so proud to play a role in Peru’s specialty coffee revolution.