Mantiqueira de Minas Regional Blend 01 - Natural - Coopervass

Conventional (no certification): $3.5274 USD / kg est.

Origin: Brazil
Variety: Mundo Novo, Catucaí, Catuaí
Process type: Natural/Sun Dried
Available quantity: 320 bags est.
Minimum order quantity (MOQ): 1 bag

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New crop samples are expected to be available by 01 Jul 2021
Available for shipping from Jul, 2021 to Feb, 2022.
251 days left to place your order

The coffee story

This is a high impact coffee. When purchasing this lot you can have access to the exact premiums paid back to the farmers and you can adjust the premium to further reward the producers. This is also a pilot from Coopervass. If successful, the cooperative will continue and expand for the coming harvests.

Alessandro Hervaz: new blood bringing life to a traditional coop

Coopervass was founded in 1960 by 27 farmers in the town of São Gonçalo do Sapucaí, in the South of Minas Gerais. 2020 marks the 60th year of the cooperative, now with 3 thousand members. Despite its longevity, Coopervass focused heavily on milk and cheese production in its first few decades. Their coffee department was created in 1972 and only began working effectively in 1996 when the cooperative built firstly a warehouse and later a quality control lab.

Mantiqueira de Minas, the microregion in South of Minas where Coopervass is based

This year, one of Algrano’s long-term partners Alessandro Alves Hervaz of Honey Coffee Farms was elected vice-president of Coopervass. Alessandro had been the president of another cooperative called APAS, also based in São Gonçalo, for 7 years. After all this time, he decided it was time for APAS to welcome fresh blood and new ideas. By that time he was already involved in Coopervass, who was also in need of fresh ideas and creativity. “After spending some time focusing on my own production and farms, Coopervass invited to join their team, so I decided to run,” he remembers.

Alessandro Alves Hervaz, vice-president of Coopervass

Alessandro is not your typical small farmer. After closely following his footsteps for the last 5 years we can say he is not short of a force of nature. Wherever he goes, the cup scores improve. Known as “Sandrão” amongst friends, Alessandro is passionate about coffee and about helping other farmers. Those who know him say he likes to go looking for trouble because heading a cooperative in need of change is not an easy job. On top of looking after his own farms from 7am, he spends every afternoon at Coopervass’ office. “Some people like to complain about problems. I try to do something about it,” he says.

This problem-solving drive can be seen in the work Alessandro is doing in Coopervass and on this coffee lot. This is a standard quality produced by the cooperative and it is normally sold internally for the C-market price. The coop’s cash-flow doesn’t allow them to buy coffees from farmers at premium prices and the producers can’t wait for a sale (which is usually a long process) to be paid. However, Alessandro wants to reward the farmers for their work so they can invest back in their farms. He also wants to bring more funds to the coop, also in need of renewal. How could he make this work in a realistic way?

Alessandro is also teaching other producers in post-harvest techniques with a focus in specialty production

Payback Project

Inspired by cooperatives in Africa and Central America, Alessandro created the Payback Project to support Coopervass’ first exporting attempt. He worked long and hard on a spreadsheet where all the costs are imputed and where he can easily find out how much of added premiums can go back to the farmers in the form of a second payment. 47.5% of the premium goes to the farmer, 47.5% to the coop and 5% to the staff in the coffee department, as a way to encourage them to improve their skills and the quality of the coop.

The Payback Project is a pilot being offered in partnership with Algrano. The coop purchases the coffees from the farmers at the base price and, as soon as the coffee is contracted by a roaster and they receive the payment from Algrano the farmer receives the premium according to how many bags they contributed to the blend. A 5 cents/lb premium, for example, generates a premium of 38,00 Brazilian reais more per bag. A 20 cents/lb premium generates a premium of 150 Brazilian reais per bag.

Currently, this coffee has been priced with roughly 20 cents/lb above the market price (the price is not being updated every day, so there might be variations). When buying this coffee a roaster can guarantee that not only the farmer’s costs are being covered but that he/she is making a profit. The 150 Brazilian reais are the equivalent of a bag of fertilizer, for example.

Despite the current available pricing, roasters can also request to add a higher premium to support this project. This extra premium can be split between the coop and the farmer OR go to the farmer in full according to the roaster's choice.

The process

In Mantiqueira de Minas, the majority of the coffees are processed as naturals because they drink better, have more sweetness and complexity. After harvesting, the coffees are dried on the patio for an average of 20 days and then taken to the mechanical drier for another 10-15 days. Screen 16 up.

Process type
Natural/Sun Dried
Altitude range
800m - 1520m
Harvest period
May, 2021 - October, 2021

Coffee Quality Evaluation

Sensorial

	Algrano (Pending) Cupped: N/A	Grower (Pending) Cupped: N/A
SCA Score	Algrano (Pending) -	Grower (Pending) 81.5
Key flavor notes	Algrano (Pending) -	Grower (Pending) Apple, Walnut, Chocolate, Black tea, Mild acidity, Tartaric
Quality comment	Algrano (Pending) -	Grower (Pending) -

Coopervass

Brazil

About the group Translate

Somos uma cooperativa com 60 anos de tradição, fundada por 27 produtores em 1960, hoje temos 2912 cooperados, boa parte produtores de café. Nossa região tem um potencial imenso para a produção de cafés especiais devido a vários fatores como clima, solos férteis, altitudes que variam de 800 a 1520 m e principalmente pelo trabalho do produtor que nos últimos anos vem aprendendo e se especializando na produção de cafés cada vez melhores, nossos cafés vem cada vez mais conquistando o mundo com sua qualidade e diversidade de perfis, acabamos de conquistar uma Identificação Geografia a “Denominação de Origem” , essa certificação é reconhecida internacionalmente e vem reforçar ainda mais e dar maior credibilidade a nosso trabalho. Nossa missão enquanto cooperativa é apoiar e incentivar nossos produtores na produção desses cafés e pra isso estamos buscando se aproximar de compradores e mercados diferenciados, trazendo assim mais renda e qualidade de vida para nossos produtores.

Roaster relationships
1
Relationships with Roasters in
Netherlands
Average orders per roaster
1

FAQ

Shipment

Shipping
Once the ordering period ends we will consolidate all coffees in a shared container. During transport, your coffee is fully insured. We will keep you informed about the shipment status.

Upon arrival of the coffee at the warehouse, you can choose between 2 delivery modes:

Doorstep delivery: We will take care of transport to your roastery. We will provide your coffee fully insured until it is ready for unloading from the truck at your roastery.
EXW (ex. warehouse) means that we will provide the coffee ready for pick-up at the terminal of the warehouse. You are responsible for organising transport and insurance from the warehouse to your roastery.

Currently, we can deliver coffee anywhere in Europe, except Hungary. For all European buyers, the coffee will be provided custom cleared in any case. Roasters in Switzerland choosing EXW will be responsible for customs clearance.

Payment

Currencies
When calculating price, you can select your preferred currency: USD, CHF, EUR, or GBP.

2 payment methods are accepted on Algrano:

1. Buy now, pay later
Pay your coffee after its delivered in Europe. This option generates an additional fee, displayed in the shopping cart.

3. Pay 10 days after placing the order
We will send you a 10 day invoice straight after you placed your order.