MEXICO - CHIAPAS / FTO

FTO stands for Fair Trade and Organic. This coffee is produced by the farmers of the cooperative Comon Yaj Noptic, which was founded in May 1995 and is based in Chiapas, Mexico. The farms are located in the Zona de la Frailesca, or “region of the monks,” in the Sierra Madre mountains in the southern part of Chiapas. In the 19th century, many Europeans built farms in this area, however in recent years Mexico has redistributed much of the land back to the ¨ejidos,¨ or local communities. Farmers in the Comon Yaj Noptic cooperative live and grow coffee on this ejido land. The farmers are committed to protecting the surrounding natural resources, and they have support from environmental organizations such as Conservation International to continue reducing their impact in the region, an area which includes El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve. Comon Yaj Noptic coffee is grown under a shade canopy consisting of 70 percent endemic forest trees and 30 percent traditional polyculture species, including