| Certified
Quality |
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In
addition to producing premiere quality coffee, Coope
El Dos pioneered the way for organic coffee production
and was the
first
coffee cooperative in Latin America to receive ISO 9002
Quality certification. |
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Today
Coope El Dos continues its efforts to ensure quality
and protect the natural environment. |
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| Our
Cooperative: (return
to top) |
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| Coffee
production began in the area of El Dos de Tilaran in the
1940’s, when agriculturists from the Central Valley
arrived to the zone, brining coffee with them. In May
1971, 79 of these small coffee farmers came together and
created Coopledos R.L. (the Cooperativa de Caficultores
de El Dos de Tilarán). |
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| Since
its humble beginning in 1971, Coope El Dos has grown from
79 to more than 580 associates. Each of our associates
has an average of 1.5 hectares and produces at an average
altitude of 950 metres above sea level. |
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| Coope
El Dos offers its members and the community two hardware
stores that sell agricultural and veterinary supplies,
credit line services, technical assistance, a coffee processing
plant with a capacity of 20,000 fanegas, a plant that
produces organic soil, and a greenhouse that grows trees
for reforestation and shade coverage for the producers.
We also invest in and donate to various community projects. |
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| Our
goal as a cooperative is to achieve the socio-economic
well being of our associates, which obliges us to continuously
improve on our productive and industrial processes and
abide by strict environmental legislation. All of our
associates have also taken on the commitment to reduce
their negative impact on the environment and employ sustainable
agricultural practices in their farms. |
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| As
an organization, Coope El Dos has taken important steps
to ensure our coffee is processed in ways friendly to
the environment that ensure a top quality product for
our consumers. In addition to our ISO 9002 Quality certification,
in 2001 we also achieved ISO 14001 Environmental Certification.
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advances that we have made in our milling process are
impressive and the social and economic impacts on the
cooperative have been drastic thanks to the very clear,
long-term vision of the management, the assistance of
Coocafe and the Fair Trade market, and the support of
various financial and technical assistance organizations.
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| Land
Redistribution is one of the projects that Coope El Dos
has been able to finance thanks to these successes and
advances. Over the past years Coope El Dos has bought
over 70 hectares of property and distributed it to over
55 producers with parcelas (small farms) of 1.4 hectares
each. |
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| Commitment
to the Environment(return
to top) |
| Coope
El Dos’s commitment for maintaining and protecting
their natural resources is exemplified in their commitment
to reforestation: in 12 years of work they have reforested
500 hectares through forest systems and the planting of
native species. They also operate their own forest Nursery
in which they produce close to 75,000 trees per year-
both projects that have been supported by the Foundation
Café Forestal and the Costa Rica Institute of Electricity
(ICE). |
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| Organic: |
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| Since
June 1996 Coope El Dos began to produce organic coffee
thanks to the encouragement of the Embassy of Holland
and the participation of other organizations. Today the
co-op has more than 32 hectares of coffee classified as
organic. With the support of the Consorcio Suscof R.L.
the co-op hopes to see an annual increase of between 10
and 15 hectares. |
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Interview with Sabino Montero, Organic Coffee Producer
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support to the producers Coopledos also operates an organic
soil plant where they produce close to 8,000 quintales
of soil per year. At the same time the plant serves as
a centre for training local producers and other organizations
on a national level. |
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| Coope
El Dos’ environment and quality policies focus on: |
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Water use
The treatment of chemical residuals
Energy conservation
Alternative and renewable energy sources
Safety at the mill |
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| Coope
El Dos’s policy on quality and the environment |
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To advocate the social and economic well being of the associates
and everyone else in their area of influence by continuously improving
the productive and industrial processes according to the demands
of the clients and through the appropriate use of human and economic
resources and the environment.
To
conform to the relevant environmental regulations and legislation
and all of the other requirements to which the co-op subscribes.
The co-op will provide the control that is needed to establish
and verify the proposed environmental objectives and goals with
the overall aim of preventing damage to the environment and cultivating
coffee based on environmentally friendly agricultural practices.
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| ISO
Certification(return
to top) |
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| ISO 9002
is a standardized international system that aims to continually
ensure and improve quality. The first steps towards certification
were taken in 1989, with various investments into the dry and
wet mills in order to treat the residual water. Little by little,
the co-op achieved their goals. |
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May of 1998 Coope El Dos was the first cooperative in
all of Latin America to be certified by ISO 9002. |
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every step in the production process is monitored and
controlled to ensure the highest possible quality. |
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The machinery,
the maintenance, the quantity of coffee received, the water
and energy usage—every stage of the process receives special
attention. |
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| Ten years
ago Coope El Dos used between 3,000 and 3,500 litres of water
for each fanega of coffee processed. The water came directly
from the river and then was returned to the river without any
treatment at all. Today, the mill permits a maximum use of only
300 litres for that same fanega of coffee produced. The wastewater
is held in the mill all day, until it comes to the end of its
cycle and goes to the sedimentation pile to begin its treatment.
Once the contaminated water has been treated, it is returned
to the river. |
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most notable effect of ISO 9002 certification has been
the reduction in the amount of water consumed in the practice.
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In 2001, Coope
El Dos also received ISO 14001 Environmental certification. ISO
14001 allows for the damage caused to the environment by the cooperative
to be assessed and it requires that concrete action be taken to
correct and end the damage caused to the environment.
See Our Commitment to the Environment |
| Malekú
y Tilawa:(return
to top) |
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In
October 2000 Coopledos began to sell part of their coffee
for national consumption as roasted, ground and 100% pure.
Tilawa is the dark roast and Malekú the light roast.
These brands are principally sold in the province of Guanacaste.
In the
first year alone, total sales were over 18,000 kilos and the
plan is to expand distribution to the rest of the country. |
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| Contact
Us(return to
top) |
Manager:
Phone:
Fax:
Email: |
Juan Carlos Alvares Ulate
(506)
693-8062
(506)
693-8067
coopdos@racsa.co.cr |
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