José Elías Santos, Finca El Matazano

My father never used coffee plants from a nursery. He simply got some seeds from a friend and planted them directly in his garden.

When he managed to sell his first coffees at a reasonable price, I decided to use part of my own land to grow beans as well. I wasn't immediately convinced, but little by little I converted all my land into a coffee plantation, and now it's all I have.

Now that I'm older, my adult son helps me a lot. In fact, we do everything together. My wife helps during harvest season; she helps us save money on pickers.

Coffee is sacred to me. It's my family's only source of income, so we depend on it completely, and luckily it's also what we love most. As a drink, but especially as work. My son and I love working in the fields, being outdoors all day, taking care of our plants, and growing the best beans possible.

We feel incredibly proud every time one of our batches is sold to a roaster in a faraway land. It helps us realize that we're part of something bigger, something that generates income for other families too, and something that brings happiness to people when they drink the coffee we've produced for them.

However, our land is small; I wish it were a bit bigger. We have 2 hectares and only grow Pacas and some IH-café90. I would love to add other varieties to further improve the quality and reduce the risk of coffee leaf rust.

But we can't complain. Our coffees are increasingly appreciated for their true value, and we love the response we're getting.