Cartaginian families are launching the first collective coffee brand in Costa Rica, originating from the Tablón de El Guarco region.

Coffee producers from Tablón de El Guarco are launching the first collective coffee brand in Costa Rica. Credit: Isel Martínez. A group of 15 families of coffee producers from the community of Tablón, in El Guarco, Costa Rica, are launching the first collective coffee brand in the country, an initiative aimed at strengthening the identity of the coffee produced in the area, reactivating the local economy, and opening up new commercial opportunities for coffee farmers. The project represents a historic step for a community with a century of coffee-growing tradition, which relies heavily on this agricultural activity as its main source of income. "Today, the community of Tablón de El Guarco is fulfilling a dream. For over a hundred years, the community has been dedicated to coffee cultivation. Thanks to this, our parents educated us and provided us with shelter; and we are proud to be the first collective coffee brand in the country," said Alejandro Ramírez, a promoter of the initiative. The community of Tablón produces approximately one million bags of coffee per year. Credit: Isel Martínez. The initiative will allow producers not only to grow coffee, but also to process and market it under their own identity, supported by a collective seal that identifies the origin of the product. Currently, coffee production in Tablón is carried out by approximately 200 local producers, mostly families who depend directly on coffee for the livelihood of their homes and the economic development of the community. The initiative has been supported by the General Directorate of the National Property Registry, as well as by experienced coffee farmers in the area, including Alexis Coffee and Amalieth Coffee, who have provided mentoring and training to strengthen the skills of the entrepreneurs. The coffee from Tablón is recognized for its high quality and for being grown in volcanic soils. Credit: Isel Martínez. According to the promoters of the project, the collective brand can be used by other producers in the area who wish to join, which would consolidate Tablón as a region recognized for the quality and traceability of its coffee. "Tablón is one of the main coffee-producing communities in the canton of El Guarco, with an annual production of more than 45,000 fanegas, which is approximately 1 million bags of coffee in fruit and nearly 2 million kilograms of processed, roasted, and ground coffee, enough to prepare around 150 million cups of coffee," Ramírez detailed. The community is also preparing for a symbolic date: in 2026, it will be 100 years since the first founding families—Navarro, Martínez, and Picado—began the first coffee plantings in the area. Tablón de El Guarco will commemorate 100 years of coffee-growing tradition in 2026. Credit: Isel Martínez. Since then, generations of producers have kept the coffee-growing tradition alive through varieties such as Caturra, Catuaí, and Hybrid, grown under climatic and geographical conditions considered ideal for the production of high-quality coffees. The coffee from Tablón is produced at altitudes ranging from 1,400 to 2,000 meters above sea level, in volcanic soils rich in minerals, factors that directly influence the characteristics of the bean and the quality of the cup. According to producers, in recent years, the cultivated areas have increased, especially in the higher areas of the community, strengthening the identity of Tablón as a region of coffee with a defined origin. The new collective brand will allow identifying and protecting the coffee produced by families in the Cartago region. Credit: Isel Martínez. Although the coffee produced in this area is already recognized for its quality, it has not yet had its own brand to identify and protect it from consumer markets. The creation of the collective brand seeks to fill this gap and provide a distinctive seal that supports the origin of the product, its history, and the work of the coffee-growing families that have sustained the tradition for a century. The project also aims to promote rural and gastronomic tourism related to coffee, as well as to generate new economic opportunities for future generations of producers in the region.