Like all small, medium and large producers in Colombia, Pergamino spent many years helplessly riding the roller coaster of international coffee prices. They had to invest in their crops without knowing what they would sell for during their 12-year production cycle. As the saying goes in Colombia, there were years of lean cows and years of fat cows — the former being more common than the latter. They sold their coffee to large exporters, never knowing its unique sensory qualities, whose hands it ended up in, or at what price. They had no way to add value to the coffees, or receive a fair price for higher quality.
Everything changed when they started selling the coffee directly to roasters and importers around the world, gaining access to a fair and sustainable trade chain that recognized quality. Stepping off the roller coaster opened up the opportunity for them to help thousands of small coffee farmers do the same. Today Pergamino works with more than 600 producers of high-quality coffees in different regions of the country. Pergamino is committed to transparency in their partnerships with these farmers, ensuring that profit margins are clear and value added by quality goes directly to the producer. The premiums we pay for our coffees range from 30% – 300% over market prices, depending on the quality and volume of the coffee. They also support the farmers with technical assistance so that they can continue to improve crop quality. The goal is for farmers and their families to see coffee cultivation as a profitable, decent business, and not just a way to survive.
The average age of the Colombian coffee farmer is 55 years old — if we do not make it profitable and worthwhile for the next generations of growers to stay on their farms, we will lose this great tradition in one or two generations
