Campesinos Ecológicos de la Sierra Madre de Chiapas

The Project: Campesinos Ecológicos de la Sierra Madre de Chiapas (CESMACH) is a legally incorporated, 250-member coffee cooperative operating in and around the biologically rich El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas, Mexico, in the Mesoamerica biodiversity hotspot.

The Deal: Verde Ventures made a loan of $89,444 to CESMACH to cover post-harvest costs of purchase, process, and transport of coffee to port and all necessary documentation and customs for export. The April 1999 loan followed three years of work with CI on sustainable agriculture techniques, market development, and biodiversity conservation.

The Benefit to Conservation: CESMACH promotes cultivation of shade-grown arabica beans in accordance with CI's Conservation Coffee™ guidelines and provides environmental education to its members. Shade coffee farms create a forested buffer zone around protected areas, harbor a rich diversity of species, and promote CI's conservation strategies in the region.