Comal

A well-rounded espresso with many sweet notes reminiscent of a chocolate cake with a molten center and delicate caramel. It has a very creamy mouthfeel, a full body, and an aftertaste of sweet almonds. Women in coffee - A group of 124 women producers created this wonderful blend of washed SHB EP FTO coffee. With support from COMAL (Asociación Civil Comercializadora Maya Alternativa), the producers focus on improving coffee quality and the environmental sustainability of their farms. They make their own organic fertilizer and attend workshops on entrepreneurship and financial literacy. They also regularly renew and care for the roots of their coffee plants to keep the trees healthy and productive.

Each producer processes and dries her own coffee on small patios. They all have their own small pulpers, fermentation tanks, washing stations, and parabolic dryers. COMAL organizes the collection of the beans from the producers and delivers them to the FECCEG dry mill in Quetzaltenango. Here, the quality team analyzes each lot. Depending on its quality, the coffee is either stored separately and sold as a microlot or blended with other coffees from the same producer organization and quality group. For every bag of COMAL Mujeres sold, we pay a premium to support a mobile medical and dental clinic. Organized by exporter UNEX, the clinic treats more than 300 producers every week during the harvest season. Premiums from each bag of COMAL Mujeres go specifically toward supporting women's health. UNEX consulted with a doctor to find out how to most effectively promote women's health in the communities where they operate. Premiums from these sales are also used to provide vitamin tablets containing nutrients that are underrepresented in their diets and promote a healthy, long life. Coffee is the producers' main source of income, but they also grow honey, fruit trees, corn, and beans. They plant trees to preserve biodiversity, protect groundwater reserves, and maintain a variety of flowers and plants. Another positive side effect is that this attracts bees and increases their honey production.