About Cooperativa El Portalito

Starting at the age of six, Ana Isabel started picking coffee with her grandparents on the farm where they used to live. She spent time working in the nursery pushing wheelbarrows and planting new coffee crops. At 16 years old, Ana Isabel learned to help fertilize the plants and to operate the wet mill at Agua Fria where her grandparents worked as pickers. Today, Ana Isabel is an Agricultural Representative for the Cáritas El Salvador Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Project in Ahuachapán. This project promotes the restoration of the agricultural landscape and creates professional opportunities for the youth in the community.

Cooperativa El Portalito Ahuachapán is a group of dedicated coffee growers with a deep love for their work. The farms of El Portalito are very close to the Ahuachapán geothermal plant, a 15-minute drive from the city, located at 750 meters above sea level. The cooperative borders the Los Ausoles River and the Quiroz River, tributaries commonly known as the Escalante River. With a maximum slope of 40%, 10 manzanas of coffee are grown with varieties of Cuscatleco, Catimor and Sampacho. The farm is rich with trees including laurels, pepeto, mango, and nance trees and turkey tail mushrooms. The cooperative members live there on the farm, with their main source of income and sustenance coming from the farm.

Starting in 2019, Cooperativa El Portalito began to produce a differentiated coffee due to careful handling and good practices. ASA (Water, Soil, and Agriculture) practices as dictated by CRS are transforming their coffee lands with the goal of increased production and irrigation systems. For El Portalito, environmental conservation and quality-focused production standards have allowed them to achieve a cup score of 80 to 83 points using honey and natural processing. The coffee cups with characteristics of sweetness, cinnamon, fresh fruit, cocoa, and a balanced body.

As a result of increased coffee quality, the cooperative has formed a marketing committee in which they want to honor not only each farmer’s work, but also the future of the youth that support their nursery and other small-holder coffee growers in their community. Ana Isabel is very proud to share her technical expertise as an Agricultural Representative sharing knowledge between technicians, representatives, and coffee farmers. Cooperativa El Portalito’s goal is to enter the specialty coffee market while continuing to expertly manage and care for their farms.