Set back from the bush to the cup, the coffee bean has a long way - as
the example of smallholders in the Central American country of
Nicaragua shows.
Coffee from Nicaragua was in the early days of the fair trade symbol
of international solidarity in general. Coffee is still a very
important export product for the Central American country - but is the
"brown gold" for about four percent of total economic output of the
country.
1.5 million bags with 60 kilos of coffee beans produced in the
previous year, the bulk of it is shipped via the port of Puerto Cortes
in Honduras neighboring country - the USA and Europe. Nicaragua itself
has no suitable harbor. The three most important countries for
acceptance Nica coffee are the United States, Germany and Venezuela.
Until that happens, however, the coffee bean a laborious and long way:
pick the fertile highlands of the Matagalpa region, about 150
kilometers from the capital Managua, countless small farmers, the
