Over the past few years, local coffee roasters have been steadily working to improve the cup quality of their coffee, like the Sagada Arabica Coffee Growers and Processors Organization (SAGPO) in Sagada, Mountain Province, now also known as the Sagada Roasterie.

While the coffee stayed consistent, it stayed too consistent. Coffee production was there, still waiting for a spotlight on a bigger market. New and old ways of coffee farming had to meet halfway and merge for something new.

In its quest to foster coffee quality to meet international standards and widen its market base, the SACGPO linked arms with various government and private organizations like the Department of Agriculture – Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP), which provided enterprise support for their arabica coffee production and processing with cupping laboratory.

Synergy came about, as technology transfer trainings were gradually introduced to coffee growers.

For instance, Benita Doga-ong, a 56-year-old coffee farmer from Bangaan, Sagada, Mountain Province who learned to unlearn old practices, is now on a pursuit for innovative ways of coffee farming.

“When the coffee we produced was tasted in a coffee cupping activity facilitated by the SACGPO, the taste and aroma of our coffee revealed what we might have done wrong along the postharvest process,” said Doga-ong. They later found that it was their harvesting method which affected the cup taste of their coffee.

Another coffee farmer from Sagada, Adeline Fangayen also expressed that she planted more than a hundred coffee seedlings years back, but nothing survived because of her lack of knowledge on the proper technologies in coffee farm management.

“Despite what happened, I still wanted to push through with coffee farming until I learned about the SACGPO and decided to join them,” expressed Fangayen.

Founded in 2006, the SACGPO was an offshoot of the Sagada Arabica Coffee Council (SACC) that was established to uplift the coffee industry in Sagada. From an initial membership of 15, SACGPO’s success in venturing into coffee processing and helping improve their members’ produce was a result of convergence among local government units, private institutions, and government agencies.

Fangayen further shared that she was able to manage her coffee farm properly through the learnings she acquired from her co-members and from the trainings she attended through the organization.

“I have two coffee production areas now, and these farms are the fruit of my learnings when I became a member of SACGPO. I participated in trainings and I learned to manage my coffee farm properly from seed to cup,” Fangayen expressed.

Doga-ong also said that after the coffee cupping activity, they employed the pick ripe method of harvesting and began sorting and segregating coffee cherries upon harvest before bringing it to the SACGPO coffee center for processing.

Aroma of hope

SACGPO Manager Vincent Melchor Andawi recalled that they had a rough start having obscure knowledge on coffee and insufficient capital to buy raw materials from coffee farmers. He also admitted that incorrect practices and improper handling affected the quality and cup taste of their coffee. And without the proper processing equipment at hand, they employed traditional methods of processing coffee – using mortar and pestle in pulping, drying beans in winnowers under direct sunlight, and roasting coffee beans in a pan among others.

“We knew that coffee has a great potential but we did not have the proper processing technologies way back, nor did we have the proper knowledge in coffee farm management until assistance started pouring in 2011 from various government agencies and private organizations, and the latest is from the DA-PRDP,” expressed Andawi.

SACGPO proposed their micro enterprise subproject on coffee processing with cupping laboratory in 2018 and it was finally completed and turned over to them in 2020.

Their enterprise subproject involves the upgrading of their existing processing activities, wherein new coffee processing equipment and materials amounting to PhP973,300.00 were provided, including a PhP900, 000.00 trading capital to purchase raw materials in the form of parchment coffee beans and green coffee beans.

“The implementation process of the DA-PRDP is different from all the others we’ve experienced from business planning until procurement because we did it ourselves,” said Andawi.

The goods and equipment they received were procured by themselves through the Community Force Account mode of procurement.

“The process was hard and it was new to us, but we are still willing to go through it once more, as we intend to propose another project to further develop our coffee enterprise and make it a world class facility and an avenue for coffee learning,” expressed Andawi.

As part of their enterprise, the SACGPO also received cupping materials worth PhP98,365.00 that helped in the profiling of their members’ coffee produce. This includes coffee grinder, cupping bowls and spoons, drip kettles, induction electric stove, weighing scale, and mobile stainless cabinet.

Andawi said that some buyers would order volumes or packs of coffee, roasted whole or ground, and require the flavor notes indicating the taste and aroma of their coffee.

“The coffee business already reached a high level of competition and without the cupping laboratory equipment and the help of a certified Q grader, we won’t be able to determine the quality of our coffee and improve it,” shared Andawi.

In total, the SACGPO received an enterprise support worth PhP1.97 million, shared by the World Bank, the DA, and the Provincial LGU of Mountain Province. As the Proponent Group of the enterprise subproject, the organization shelled out a counterpart in kind.

This and other initiatives gave SACGPO and its members the strength to move forward and strive towards improving the quality of their coffee.

Bearing fruit

The coffee season came and went, and each year, the SACGPO’s enterprise subproject has marked a rising trajectory in their inventory and sales record in 2019 using the first tranche of the trading capital they received from the DA-PRDP.

Andawi shared that they used to consolidate around 1,000 kilograms (kg) of coffee parchments and coffee green beans since they started their business over 12 years ago. And in 2019, they were able to buy 4,539.55 kg coffee parchment and 681.20 kg coffee green beans generating a total gross sales amounting to PhP2.01 million.

“The trading capital we received from the DA-PRDP in February 2019 has really helped us in our operations for we can now pay the coffee farmers instantly once they bring their coffee produce to the coffee center,” shared Andawi.

The organization received the rest of the trading capital in January 2020 and were able to buy more raw materials of around 6,303.95 kg coffee parchments and 652.6 kg coffee green beans. However, the trajectory of their sales record started going downwards as the restrictions were imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We had the raw materials and sales are booming at first until the lockdown was imposed and we lost most of our regular buyers from Metro Manila. It was daunting but we decided to see it as an opportunity to further improve the production and quality of our coffee here in Sagada,” shared Andawi.

The SACGPO still managed to generate PhP1.66 million gross sales in 2020 despite the challenges and changes caused by the pandemic.

In 2021, with the restrictions still in place, the organization opted to buy coffee produce from Sagada coffee growers only and processed roasted and ground coffee by order.

Based on their records, they consolidated a total of 2,778 kg coffee parchments and 462 kg coffee green beans from Sagada coffee growers only. They sold more than 2,000 packs of roasted and ground coffee (250grams and 500 grams) including more than 150 kilograms of coffee parchments and coffee green beans, producing a gross sales amounting to PhP1.074 million.

At present, some of the coffee grower members of the SACGPO have expanded their production areas and all are working diligently to improve the quality of their produce with the support of the organization as well as agricultural technicians from private and government agencies.

Various capability trainings were also conducted by the DA-PRDP since 2020, to improve the organizational and enterprise operations of SACGPO. Coffee grower members of the SACGPO have also participated in technology trainings like the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) for specialty coffee which was held in partnership with the ACDI/VOCA PhilCAFE Project and the Coffee Collective of the Philippines, Inc. – Philippine Coffee Guild.

While SACGPO’s business is considered successful in the coffee industry, Andawi admitted that they are not fully confident they knew what is necessary on coffee particularly on the technical aspect that is continuously evolving. They also still need to increase productivity to cope with the increasing demand for coffee and the competition as well.

The local coffee industry in Sagada continues to grow as the coffee growers adhere to the standards, technologies, and good agricultural practices they have acquired and developed through the years. At present, the organization has 22 market outlets/partners within Mountain Province including Baguio City, Metro Manila, and in Regions 1, 2 and 3 and is expected to grow over time.

With new learnings in place, Sagada’s local coffee industry will shine on a global scale, producing top-notch coffee that is definitely a roast to boast.

By Elvy T. Estacio