Café Huancayño

History
Víctor Quispe has worked in coffee production for 29 years. He arrived as laborer, after having completed his obligatory military service. Then he decided to buy a plot of land on his own, but he never forgot his time as a day-laborer because of all that it taught him. “That’s where I learned to weed, to harvest, to peel, to wash. I didn’t know anything when I got here. In 1990 I went to Colonia Kantutani. I didn’t know the soil. I didn’t know where you could produce. I learned that the soil is very important. It took me five years, but I learned it. Here you can’t produce criollo coffee very easily. I have better luck with caturra.”

In addition to many other satisfactions, coffee gave him his family. He is married to Andrea Quispe Lipa. They have six children, the oldest of whom has completed his military service and is learning carpentry in Caranavi. Three of his children attend the Guillermo Molina Secondary School (in Spanish, Colegio Guillermo Molina) in Chornota, near the colony, and the two youngest are in elementary school in the colony.

Víctor heard about the competition in a meeting with his cooperative and decided to participate. “They told us about the prices that the participants had won last year. For that reason, I wanted to participate. I wanted to know how good my coffee was. I didn’t suspect that I would have to work my fingers to the bone. I just wanted to improve to participate next year. It never occurred to me that I could enter the competition directly. But I know that I can get even better. My vision is to reach the top rankings. I’ve decided to build my own tank for washing my product.”

Environmental Care
Organic compost from the discarded coffee pulp, the use of natural barriers, soil protection.

Other Statistics:
Soil Type: Clay Loam
Annual Precipitation: 1700 mm/year
Shade Type: Inga edulis - Cedrella odorata
Weed Control: 2 times a year
Pruning: Growth - Renovation
Productive Practices: Organic compost from the discarded coffee pulp, the use of organic barriers, soil protection.