Peru CAC Shankivironi

Of the 119 members that make up the totality of Cooperativa Agraria Cafetalera (CAC) Shankivironi, 102 are certified organic, producing 17,000 quintales of certified coffee per year. With an additional 4,500 uncertified they have the capacity to produce around 4000 bags per year.

Founded in 2015 by 11 producers from the native Shankivironi native community in Chanchamayo, their aim was to improve the lives and prospects of the local small holder farmers through technical assistance, environmental management, loan provision and quality and productivity strategies. They now embrace 58 members from the districts of Perene and Pichanaki in Chanchamayo and 61 from the districts of Rio Negro and Rio Tambo in the Satipo province.

With their mission set out to “Work for a quality of life of our associates, with a efficient management, exporting coffees in harmony with the nature” they recently embarked on a project to provide eco-efficient cookers to members of the local community with 104 such cookers being implemented.

This is important to the community as well as the environment as it reduces the consumption of firewood due to efficiencies in capturing and holding heat. By channelling the smoke better this reduces bronchopulmonary diseases such as asthma, eye diseases such as cataracts, and skin diseases. It also enables better quality of food to be prepared and consumed. With the reduction in gathering of firewood, this better allows for the recovery of forest ecosystems, of soils, bodies of water and biological diversity.

Coffee here is wet processed – picked when ripe, pulped under water and fermented in tanks to remove the mucilage. Rinsed in cold water it is then transferred to solar drying beds – poly tunnels with a raised patio where the heat and moisture levels can be controlled for better drying.