Tropico Sur is a high-quality specialty lot from 25 small-scale producers around San Lorenzo, Nariño. Their parent organization, TERA COFFEE SAS, is a young producer group established in 2015, based in the departments of Huila and Nariño, dedicated to producing high-quality specialty coffee. They have 140 partner farmers in Nariño and 120 in Huila, operating as producer associations named Ecoterra (Nariño) and TERRAVERDE (Huila) in their respective departments.
In 2015, Ubemar Lasso, who was engaged in coffee production, established TERA COFFEE as a family business with the goal of enabling small coffee farmers to directly trade in the market. He has since worked with local colleagues to form producer associations. Mr. Ubemar is dedicated to improving quality and bringing microlots to market, thereby not only increasing the price of coffee produced by farmers and their families but also enhancing their pride in their work and empowering small-scale farmers to find happiness even with their limited land and production capacity.
Preserving Culture
Mr. Ubemar, with his extensive experience, visits every single farm to advise on improvements. While prioritizing the final coffee quality and cupping profile, he understands the needs and challenges of each region and proposes optimal solutions for each group. By implementing easy-to-change advice such as picking and drying methods, as well as technical updates in cultivation, farm management, and processing methods, he has achieved positive results, leading to improved coffee quality and increased income for the farmers. Additionally, a distinctive feature of small-scale coffee farms in Colombia is the intercropping of other agricultural products, primarily for food, within the farm. Bananas, corn, beans, and fruit trees such as oranges, mandarins, and avocados are commonly cultivated, embodying a cultural production system known as "Pan Coger." Maintaining this deeply rooted production culture is also a characteristic of their approach, as intercropping with other plants stabilizes the soil, contributes to yield and quality, and prevents erosion, thus preserving traditional coffee production methods.
The premium gained from quality improvements has not only enhanced the living conditions of the producers and their families but has also fostered motivation for sustainable coffee production through education for children, improved production infrastructure, and technological investments.
Mastercol
Mastercol is the company handling the export for TERA COFFEE SAS. Established in 2019, they are an exporter and platform provider that supports producers in remote and hard-to-access areas to enter the market. They offer dry mill and quality control support, sales channels, as well as marketing and branding support. By using their unique platform, they enable transparent coffee distribution even for small farms in remote areas, which has earned them the support of many producers. While being a venture company utilizing digital tools, they have also gained trust as an exporter by employing the latest dry mill and equipment to ensure that the quality of coffee produced with dedication by coffee farmers is maximized.
In collaboration with them, TERA COFFEE sells high-quality specialty coffee from small-scale producers (1-3 hectares) belonging to Ecoterra under the name Tropico Sur. As the name suggests, it features profiles of tropical fruits and mandarin oranges, making it a captivating lot with a Nariño-like fruitiness and body.
