history of Nicaragua
Image source: Royal Coffee
Since coffee’s arrival in Nicaragua in the mid-1800s, it has been a significant component of the nation’s economic development and environmental status. Today, Nicaragua’s economy is still largely dependent on agriculture, with coffee accounting for 30% of its exports. 95% of coffee is grown by small-scale farmers, who utilize their families as the primary source of labor. They also grow fruits and vegetables and source firewood from their farms, contributing to sustainability.
95% of Nicaragua’s coffee production is “shade grown”, in which farmers cultivate coffee under canopies of trees, promoting biodiversity, soil health, and water conservation. In a region that suffers from high rates of deforestation, soil erosion and water contamination, shade-grown coffee plantations are an environmental safe-haven, offering a variety of ecosystem services.
In recent decades, Nicaraguan farmers have been plagued by coffee price crashes and droughts. Small-scale farmers have been hit the hardest, and have faced hunger and homelessness. Through these struggles, farmers have benefited from Nicaragua’s strong cooperative system. Some strongest cooperatives have unionized under La Asociación de Cooperativas de Pequeños Productores de Café de Nicaragua (CAFENICA), which defends smallholder interests and prioritizes Fair Trade policies. By supporting farmers’ needs, CAFENICA has proved that the improvement in livelihoods means an improvement in coffee quality - in the Nicaraguan Cup of Excellence Competition, fair trade smallholders won 9 of the 11 top prizes.
