Timor-Leste Laclo Natural

We taste: Passionfruit curd, prosecco, blondies, chocolate covered ginger, cardamom

ETHICALLY AND SUSTAINABLY SOURCED

Wet Mill: Raimutin Community Wet Mill

Producers: Laclo Village

Region: Ermera

Country: Timor-Leste

Altitude: 1200 - 1600 MASL

Variety: Hybrido de Timor, Typica

Process: Natural

Drying: 21 days on raised beds

Preparation: EP 0,20

Packing: EcoTact 60kg

FOB/kg $8,37

This is the context of why we partner with Raw Material in Timor-Leste:

We are excited to present you the coffees from the suco (village) of Malabe. Zachael, the village chief has been an ambassador for the future of Timor-Leste specialty coffee when discussing the new and a hard to envisage future systems with neighbouring village chiefs and farmers. Coffee here grows in the forests; shaded, untouched, and organic by default.

During the building of the Atsabe Community Wet Mill, it was important to consider the best practices that could be applied to the drying stages of coffee processing. Pulling on the collective knowledge from the managers of the producing countries of the Raw Material team, we were able to hybridise our drying beds.

A combination of raised African beds, bamboo sheet beds from Timor-Leste, and stackable smaller beds from Colombia ensured that our drying methods played on the strengths of many schools of thought at one station. 

Timor-Leste currently faces enormous economic upheaval, as its oil reserves begin to run dry. In its place, coffee is set to become that nation’s most vital export. In Timor-Leste, our work is currently focussed namely in the municipality of Ermera. One of thirteen municipalities in the country, it is home to the largest coffee production volumes, whilst almost 60% of the municipality's population live below the poverty line. Coffee is Timor-Leste’s most important crop, and with the end of oil income, improving the coffee sector is of critical importance. Coffee is the second-highest earner for the country after oil, with 37% of households dependent on coffee for income.

However, productivity is extremely low, alongside profitability which is both low and volatile. This is because almost all coffee is sold in the commodity market for a discounted C price. Globally, we use a framework to compare options of where and how we work in terms of potential for economic and social impact. We met with groups of producers in villages across Atsabe to hear about how the coffee market has served them in recent history. 

Together we developed a plan for a prosperous future through: 

1 Sustainably raising and maintaining the quality of Atsabe’s coffee predictably above 80 points 

2 Connecting with those roasters who want to commit long-term 

3 Systematically solving the diverse challenges laying along the path to selling in the specialty market; financial, legal, cultural, infrastructural, technical etc.