Gabriel Cadavid

How long have you been growing coffee and what got you started?

“Coffee growing has been in our family as a tradition from our grandparents for more than 80 years, we grew up around the coffee farms in the south west region of Antioquia; Approximately 25 years ago we acquired our first coffee farm in Titiribi Antioquia, with a coffee crop in poor conditions. We then began a process of environmental management of the crop, preserving the waters and natural reserves and creating a sustainable farm. During these years we have been improving and changing the varieties of coffee looking for optimal production and an excellent cup for the final consumer.”

What is your favorite part of growing coffee?

“We love the process from the beginning, starting with the selection of the seeds for planting to obtaining an ideal cup of great flavor. This process is linked to the great social work that we do in our region, the cultivation of coffee creates very stable employment option for our employees, we try, in most cases, to employ women who are the heads of households in the community and are in need of a job and income, that way we ensure a great social contribution towards improving the conditions of many people in the town.

Seeing and feeling our happy customers having a cup of coffee from Finca El Pilar is the greatest satisfaction that one can feel as a coffee grower.”

Conversely, what is the hardest part of your job?

“The climatic factor has been very influential in the volume and quality of production, a situation that affects the majority of coffee growers in our country, including us. It is hard for us to adapt to the changing, unpredictable weather. In addition to that we also consider that there still is a lack of equity in the sale price for the coffee producer compared to the sales price to the final consumer, so we are working towards direct connections and high-quality coffee to compensate for that.”

What is unique about how you grow and harvest coffee?

“Our differentiating factor is the quality of the land, it is a privileged soil for planting coffee. In addition to this we always look for the highest technology for cultivation with permanent quality controls, and thanks to our privileged micro climate we have coffee availability throughout the whole year. In addition to that we have worked very hard to get our farm certified and today we hold three types of certifications, which are rain forest, Fairtrade and 4C.”

What are your plans to continue improving quality?

“Continuing with the proper management of the environment, water resources and protected areas, we are exploring the cultivation of new varieties of coffee and we seek to offer training to our employees, thus maintaining the excellent quality of El Pilar coffee.”