Carlos Arturo Caldón

On the western side of the department of Huila, on the skirt of the central cordillera of Colombia, we arrive to the town of La Plata. lt is an important center for the coffee of the area and even sorne coffee producers of Cauca bring their coffee here to be sold. Just 15 minutes away, up the mountain, we meet Carlos Arturo Caldon with his wife Floraida and daughter Maria, at their farm Los Pinos. Carlos tells us his story of how he began with coffee around 20 years ago. At flrst, he worked in severa! jobs such as cattle ranching, mining, and other informal jobs which he didn’t like, so eventually his dad gifted him a piece of land with sorne coffee trees to start his own business. Since then, it has been quite a journey and in 2020 he made the switch to specialty coffee. This recent endeavor seeking quality, has him full of joy as by making small changes at his farm he has been able to see the impact it has. Such changes have been planting trees for shade, protection and taking care of water sources, soil analysis to reduce the use of agrochemicals, and improvements of the wet mili and drying area. Carlos is sure that if he keeps this path better things will come, and he irradiates conf1dence and the image of a bright future in specialty for him.

At the farm it is quite a joint family venture where each member fulfills a specific task. Maria, the daughter, does sorne chores of the crop and keeps the books of the different activities.

His wife, Floraida, is in charge of the drying area, while Carlos oversees the other chores of the farm such as the wet mill. He is proud of the work they have done and of what the future will bring.