About This Coffee
El Puente means “The Bridge” and that’s exactly what this project sets out to be. For many smallholder farmers in Palestina and Huila, post-harvest processing is a major hurdle. Many lack adequate time or infrastructure to process their coffee to the highest quality within their own farms. Without the infrastructure to process their own coffee, producers often sell wet parchment at a discount, missing out on the true value of their crop and losing out on traceability, quality and income.
Through the El Puente Central Processing Project, Clearpath helps close the gap by buying fresh cherries directly from over 240 allied families and processing them at a dedicated facility. This setup allows for consistent quality and keeps each blend true to its intended composition, giving these coffees a better chance to meet specialty standards and reach the right buyers.
With support from El Puente, producers receive training, technical guidance and access to a reliable processing system. Cherry is handpicked at peak ripeness, floated to remove defects and then fermented based on Brix levels and local conditions. The result is a consistent and fully traceable lot that producers can be proud of and that roasters can count on.
In 2023 alone, the project saved 19 million liters of water and generated over USD $3.5 million in value for local families. Coffee from El Puente is available up to 10 months a year with a turnaround time of 45 days or less for export.
Cultivation
Grown across diverse microclimates in Palestina and Huila, this coffee benefits from the rich volcanic soils and ideal elevation that characterize the region. Producers cultivate Colombia, Castillo and Caturra varieties using agroecological practices that support cup quality and environmental sustainability.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Cherry is harvested at peak maturity and floated to remove any underripe cherry. Then coffee undergoes fermentation while monitoring Brix levels. After fermentation, the coffee is washed and sundried using a mix of sun and mechanical methods for 10 to 15 days to reach optimal moisture levels of 10 to 11%.
Clearpath
Founded by experienced agricultural trader Vicente Mejía, Clearpath Coffee works with producers in Colombia and exports high quality, sustainable single-origin coffees from smallholders, cooperatives and estates. Clearpath partners with producers to support ethical, sustainable growth through fair prices, direct communication with buyers and building long term relationships with sustainability-minded buyers.
Coffee in Colombia
Colombia has been producing and exporting coffee renowned for their full body, bright acidity and rich aftertaste, since the early 19th century.
Colombia boasts a wide range of climates and geographic conditions that produce their own unique flavors in coffee. This also means that harvest times can vary quite a bit. In fact, between all its different regions, Colombia produces fresh crop nearly all year round.
The increasing focus on the specialty industry is changing the way traders and farmers do business. It is becoming more common for farmers to isolate the highest quality beans in their lots to market separately. These higher-quality lots are often sold under specific brands or stories.
Besides its wide variety of cup profiles, Colombia has quickly expanded its certification options over the past 10 years. The most common certifications available are Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance and Organic.