Vail Valley coffee roaster aids its coffee farmers

Special to the Daily
Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea announced the completion of its Tolima Colombia coffee outreach project which supports 40 female coffee farmers in Colombia’s post-armed conflict zones.
Nestled in southwestern Colombia, Tolima is a region rich with mountain ranges, rivers and valleys. The region produces some of the finest coffee in Colombia. In partnership with the Cooperative de Caficultores del Sur del Tolima, the project provided technical expertise in sustainable farming, processing, and harvesting coffee along with de-pulping and new fermentation equipment to process the raw coffee. Farm structures and homes for women farmers were repaired and legal guidance was provided to formalize ownership of women-owned farms. The result of the four-year project was improved quality of life and gender empowerment, along with support for a sustainable farming community.
For 31 years, Vail Mountain Coffee & Tea has engaged with their coffee farming communities to improve the lives and health of coffee growers. In addition to the CAFISUR Cooperative, it has partnered with the FCLI (a Canadian government fund), Agro Café, and The Coffee Source to create sustainable coffee communities.
“Giving back to the communities that work so hard to produce such excellent coffee is a privilege and gives our company a sense of purpose” said co-founder Chris Chantler in a news release.
VMCT sells coffee from the CAFISUR Cooperative as a single origin coffee and incorporates it into many of its signature blends and dark Roasts. VMCT sells its coffee to over 350 wholesale partners across the food and beverage spectrum and recently opened a second café at the base of Beaver Creek.

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For more information, go to the Vail Coffee & Tea website.
