Educating and Advocating for Coffee Sustainability
It was our great pleasure to recently host our Sumatran coffee trading partners at our farms to train them in sustainable growing practices. With technical assistance from Distant Lands Coffee, our partners were able to introduce greenhouse-type drying patios to their operations in Lintong, Sumatra.
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We believe in sharing our sustainable growing and milling methods broadly in the coffee community. Members of the Distant Lands La Minita Green Coffee Trading team have served on the Environmental Committee and Sustainability Council of the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
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The company also welcomes producers, millers, roasters, retailers and the media to personally visit our farms and beneficios to learn about the techniques and technologies that have made Distant Lands a world leader in sustainable coffee production.
Leading In Social Responsibility and Real Care for Farm Employees
The Distant Lands farm and mill staff are at the heart of all we do. Hacienda La Minita is a community of extended family–deserving of a good life, including on-site housing, healthcare and financial stability. Our employees are treated respectfully and paid well.
Our coffee cherry pickers are experts at their craft, skilled in picking only the best and brightest of the red fruit. They take great pride in their craft and reward us with the highest quality coffee. For their special care and expertise, they are paid higher than prevailing wages for these skills. This has been a successful arrangement benefiting all parties for many years.
Providing a Good Livelihood for Our Workers
There are a great number of opportunities at origin to make decisions that improve lives, better communities, and lessen environmental impacts. Some of our social programs at origin:
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We have set up no-cost dental and medical preventative care clinics–all of our full-time workers and their immediate family are enrolled in programs that screen for potential health problems.
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Although many of our farmers have their own houses and live off of the farm, we provide modern housing for our full-time employees and temporary workers that come with our own hydroelectric power and piped in spring water.
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We provide fully staffed Day Care facilities at our farms where we also provide meals and supplies for the children. As of 2023, we have a total of 7 “Casas de La Alegria,” that can manage up to 400 children during the crop season.
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We have invested over $100,000 over ten years in renovating schools in Colombia. This has benefited over 2,500 rural Colombian children in our communities.
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We provide our farm employees’ children with school uniforms and annually assist the local schools with supplies and materials.
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A life-estate housing program for retiring workers
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We support the leisure activities of our workers by funding three football teams and a ladies choir, as well as annual workers association outings.​
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We are active supporters of surrounding communities’ public works.
Stewardship of Our Land
We do not use any herbicides or insecticides. All weed cleaning is done by hand. We test the soil on the entire farm twice a year, and design our soil enrichment formulas accordingly. Fertilizer is applied sparingly in order to keep the soil in proper harmony.
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Terraced coffee groves, planting natural vegetation, and an intricate and carefully maintained drainage system all help guard against erosion. Natural forest is designed within the shade-covered coffee groves–a bird, mammal, or insect can travel virtually the entire farm without leaving the cover of their natural environment.
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Both Hacienda La Minita and Hacienda Rio Negro maintain 200-acre old growth forest reserves that will never be brought into cultivation.
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Our green coffee trading division, La Minita, shares Distant Lands water and land stewardship practices with coffee growers around the world. Each year, we increase the volume of coffees we process from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms.
