About This Coffee
ZaPo was born and raised in CiMiZhu village, where he currently oversees coffee cultivation at his own farm. When he was younger, ZaPo worked at MenfLian, a coffee growing center, but he returned to CiMiZhu in 2006. Seeing the poor conditions his fellow villagers lived in, ZaPo organized local farmers and taught them all he had learned in MenfLian so they could begin growing coffee. The villagers were also employed cultivating, harvesting and processing coffee at the 40-hectare plantation ZaPo built.
Cultivation
As coffee prices began falling around 2013, it has become more difficult to sell coffee in the region. Now, ZaPo and the villagers work with HuangGuan Coffee Co. to optimize operations and increase profit.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
This coffee is dried using a processing method common in tea cultivation. Cherry is selectively handpicked and processed on the farm. Cherry is dried for a short time in mechanical dryers and then removed. Cherry sits and lightly ferments before being placed back in the mechanical dryers for more drying. This process – drying, lightly fermenting, drying again – continues until cherry is dried to 12-13% moisture. Dried cherry is stored in a warehouse for at least 15 days before hulling. Coffee is rested for 2 to 3 months at the dry mill before being dry milled and prepared for export.
Sucafina Yunnan
Despite not being well known for coffee production, Yunnan has the ideal conditions for specialty coffee production. We are building an increasing number of coffee projects as our presence in Yunnan increases. We see a lot of potential producer-partners who have previously sold their coffees to blenders. With some investment in training and infrastructure, a lot of hard work and a strong quality control system, we just know that coffee producers in Yunnan can shine. Learn more about our operations in Yunnan.
Coffee in China
The majority of coffee produced in China is grown in the Yunnan Province in western China. Our operations in the country are young, but through our partnerships and our Yunnan-based lab and wet & dry mills, we are able to offer a range of great value coffees that display uniformity and consistent profiles.
Sucafina has a lab, office, wet mill and dry mill in the heart of Munaihe, just outside of Pu’er. This small village is where most of the key traders and dry mills in Yunnan are based. We have a small but very experienced team who are committed to delivering coffees to the high quality and ethical standards of Sucafina.
The Yunnan team has worked to develop specific products to represent Yunnan coffees for Sucafina. These products span a quality and value range to allow for a dynamic offering to our clients. In a market where consistency has not always been a focus, we are excited by this opportunity to deliver reliable, quality coffees to our customers.
We have a strong local partnership with a company that enables our in-country financing, logistics and navigation of Chinese trade.
We also looking at China as a destination market and are working on establishing a position within China selling to domestic roasters.
Yunnan is a beautiful part of the world that offers many opportunities for coffees, both as unique offerings as well as making certain blends—such as washed milds—more robust & dynamic. We welcome anyone to come visit & explore what Yunnan has to offer.