12:24 | Puno (Puno region), May. 7.
Quechua coffee producer Vicentina Phocco revealed she used to be a housewife and her husband eventually worked in a mine before their foray into coffee cultivation.
According to Phocco, her husband Pablo Mamani earned barely enough to survive, so they decided to change course and step in coffee cultivation in their land located in Alto Inambari district of Sandia province (Puno region).
"We took over the business from my father-in-law. My husband didn't like working on a farm but little by little he got used to it, and then we started to cultivate coffee with the United Nations' support," Phocco stated.
This is how they started planting coffee with the idea of becoming one of the best producers.
"I want to move forward and export to other countries so as to provide education to my children," she said while holding the award along with her husband and youngest child.
According to the Puno-based coffee producer,
Quechua coffee is cultivated in 3.5 hectares and harvested under
full moon.
It must be noted Phocco is a beneficiary of the Coffee Production Chain Improvement Project, financed by State-run National Commission for Development and Life without Drugs (Devida).
These two institutions provided technical assistance during the cultivation process and helped with the equipping of post-harvest modules to enhance coffee quality in Sandia province's valleys.
(END) JCB/MAO/RMB/MVB
Published: 5/7/2018