International Women’s Day is on 8th March, and this year, we’re shining a much deserved spotlight on Victoria Concepcion.

We’ve been working with Victoria since 2015. Back then, she was farming a piece of land, named Mi Bendicion, that was small but mighty, and word had spread far and wide in Honduras.

In fact, talk of its amazing potential and high cupping scores had got to Will, our director of coffee, who was then on a sourcing trip in the country and immediately paid a visit.

It’s safe to say that he was blown away by what Victoria had made from her small plot, and he picked up everything he could for Pact customers. As usual, he paid Victoria a deserved premium for this exceptional crop.

She soon reinvested this into a second farm, which was a stone’s throw from Mi Bendicion and in a state of disrepair. Victoria worked her magic on the space, and, flatteringly, named it Finca Pact Coffee in recognition of the mutually beneficial relationship we have together.

After seeing the fruits of Victoria’s labour, many of her neighbours came to her for advice on how to grow fantastic speciality coffee. 

She became a leader in the community, helping other farmers, giving them tips on the farm and assisting them with making better lives for themselves through income generated by coffee.

They clubbed together to buy a collective drying facility and put it in Victoria’s house in recognition of her generosity to the local community.

Drying facilities may sound fairly uninteresting. But right now, they’re absolutely pivotal to smallholder coffee farmers in the face of climate change.

Great coffee depends on being dried consistently for a long period of time. A few decades ago, it would have been no problem – all of the coffee would have been rested on a patio to dry over three months. 

But today, Honduras is seeing much wetter drying seasons. The intermittent rain stunts the drying process, and this reduces the amount of a farmer’s crop that they can sell. When you’re working on fine margins, this can be a matter of just making a profit or losing a considerable amount. 

As a result of this community drying facility, many of Victoria’s neighbours have been able to get the price they deserve for their coffee, leading to investment in infrastructure, parents being able to send their children into education and much more. All of this stemming from the kindness of Victoria. Now that’s something worth celebrating.

Mi Benedicion is available 7th March.