FTF Volunteers Help Haitian Coffee Reach US Markets

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Yves Gourdet stops to pose for a photo with some coffee "cherries", during his 2010 FTF Trip to Haiti which focused on coffee marketing
Two of Partners' Farmer to Farmer volunteers have taken the initiative to help quality Haitian coffee reach export markets in the US, through their social enterprise called HaitiCoffee. The access to higher value markets allows the farmers to reinvest profits into their communities and businesses so that they might reach even more local and international markets, and improve their livelihoods. Check out their website at haiticoffee.com!

Long-time Partners volunteer Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak realized the potential while traveling to Haiti with Farmer to Farmer and working with Makouti Agro Enterprise. After recruiting and teaming up with FTF volunteer and businessman Yves Gourdet, originally from Haiti, the two have recently launched a successful enterprise. Below is an update from Myriam. I'm sure our past FTF-Haiti volunteers will be happy to read about this progress. Spread the word, try to coffee for yourself, and see if your local coffee shop will carry it!

"It has been quite sometime since I updated all of you on the progress of our coffee project. Things have been really moving along. In February of this year Yves and I incorporated his company Haiti Coffee and became business partners. In April, we successfully received our first shipment. Importing was a challenge, but thanks to the hard work of Papy and Makouti we found a way to streamline the process. Next time will be much easier. We have sold close to 2000 pounds of the green coffee so far across the USA. It is being very well received. We have also been roasting (with Humboldt Bay Coffee Company) and selling some online at www.haiticoffee.com. The end consumers are raving about the coffee."
- From an email by Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak

Comments

  1. MFHCMSunday, August 07, 2011

    Great to see you are helping Haiti! Great job with the blog! Thanks for sharing the post!



    http://www.mannaforhaiti.com
    http://www.mfhcm.org

    ReplyDelete

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