How valuable is coffee? You know its value to you at 6
a.m. And when morning coffees are multiplied on an international
scale, coffee becomes second only to oil as the world's
most traded legitimate commodity. That's impressive for a product
that, unlike oil, can be sustainable and
environmentally friendly. In Honduras, where The ODTC invests,
coffee represents 22% of national export revenue. Honduras is the
third largest producer of coffee in its region and exports $340
million worth of coffee annually, making it a continually moving cash flow
that brings with it much needed revenue for the country.
Despite
coffee's status as a high-value commodity, the majority of small
Honduran coffee growers aren't adequately compensated for their
products. The Open Door Trading Company (ODTC) introduces new
opportunities for training, business investment and product
distribution that can significantly raise the incomes of small
Honduran coffee farmers. Our organic coffee investment
program produces a high-quality, high-demand product
while retaining the integrity of soil and letting farm families
live pesticide-free.
The ODTC Invests in Honduran Coffee Growers
The ODTC coordinates with the
non-governmental organization and microfinancing group
FEHMISSE
(the Honduran Federation of Microenterprises
and the Social Sector of the Economy) and Inversiones Ingeniosas, a
Tegucigalpa-based investment group that's secured permission to
export Honduran coffee. Our combined efforts help small farmers get
training in sustainable coffee farming, acquire affordable funding
for their small businesses, and receive assistance with product
distribution.
Learn
more by watching our quick video clip of coffee farming interviews
in Honduras. Here you'll meet farmers such as Juan Francisco
Gonsalez of Paraiso, Honduras and Sonia Isabel Valladores, a
representative of 40 coffee growers from Ondablu in the Honduran
highlands.
The Open Door Trading Company has already enrolled more than 175 small coffee growers in our certification program and secured their production commitments. Our goal is to enroll more than 1500 private growers by the year 2015. This participation level will allow us to capture 30% of the total coffee export market in Honduras. For every 150 growers we sign up, around 3,000 people will gain employment.
Here's additional footage of our recent meeting with coffee farmers
in Paraiso, Honduras.