About This Coffee
In the 50's, Hilario Acosta started growing his first coffee trees. Three generations later the family runs three farms, a wet mill, a dry mill and an export business under the name 'Cafe de Exportacion SA' or CADEXSA.
We have been working with the Acosta family since 2016. They export coffee from every region of Honduras to many global markets. CADEXSA's main operations are based in Marcala but, led by Hilario’s son Omar, they have been expanding in Octopeque, where they have opened a new mill.
CADEXSA works closely with small and medium size producers, cooperatives and Acosta-family farms. As a part of the Honduran coffee-growing community, CADEXSA’s nonprofit “Bean of Life” helps coffee-producing families with educational outreach, access to healthcare and much more. The nonprofit has brought seedlings, inputs and agricultural extension to member farmers and cooperatives. Additionally, they have helped organize medical brigades that bring dental and medical care to remote areas that do not typically have access. They have organized classes on good nutrition and brought computers and other school supplies to community schools.
SHG
Strictly High Grown (SHG) specifies the altitude at which the coffee was grown. A coffee must be grown at 1,200 meters above sea level or higher to be considered SHG. The higher altitude and lower temperatures mean that the coffee fruit matures more slowly, creating a denser bean.
European Preparation (EP)
EP stands for European Preparation. EP beans are Screen 15+ with a low defect tolerance.
Coffee in Honduras
Honduras is a small yet mighty coffee producer. The country boasts the largest per capita coffee production in the world. Beginning in 2017, Honduras began placing in third place for Arabica production volume globally. For this slot, they compete with Ethiopia—a country 10 times larger than Honduras. The two countries trade between third and fourth place annually, but the achievement is impressive, nonetheless.
Honduras has everything it needs to become a premier specialty coffee producer. The country has the right growing conditions, abundant fertile soils and soaring altitudes (nearly all farms are at more than 1,000 meters above sea level), plus a variety of microclimates.
Beginning in the early 2000s the industry began to focus on quality. Improved infrastructure (better mechanical dryers, centralized wet mills, an increasing number of solar dryers), quality control/assurance trainings (separating lots by qualities, cupping schools, etc.), the rise of specialty-focused exporters, increased volumes of certified coffees and the strengthening cooperative movement all have worked in tandem to make Honduran coffee ‘one to watch’.
It is only in more recent years that coffee production in Honduras has reached specialty levels comparable to other Central American countries, but specialty roasters are responding with enthusiasm. In 2017, a lot in the Cup of Excellence garnered the highest price ever paid for a Cup of Excellence coffee in any country: $124.50 per pound (approximately $56.50 per kg).
Above all, while Honduras increasingly offers high end microlots, what the country arguably represents overall is exceptional value. Quality has improved massively over the last 15 years, and in addition to unique specialty lots, the country offers very solid, clean blenders at very attractive prices.