By: Carlos Mario Gallego (Co – Founder).
Coffee under shade or semi-shade.
Considering the climate change we are facing, at the PORTUGAL farm, we have maintained an action plan for 20 years, aimed at maintaining a strategy of adaptation and mitigation of the effects caused by climate variations.
As part of this plan, we plant shade trees in the coffee plantations, seeking to control the water economy, which in turn allows us to mitigate the effects that periods of water deficit impose on production. Similarly, we contribute to maintaining soil fertility, help reduce erosion, recycle nutrients and provide a large amount of organic matter, in addition to increasing populations of epiphytic plants and the diversity of bird and butterfly species that live in the crops.
With all these actions we also want to “Contribute to the management and conservation of soil and water, the increase and maintenance of production, to guarantee sustainability and the strengthening of the social and economic development of coffee families”.
The care of the environment, social welfare and economic sustainability are pillars of this project. Certifications such as Rain Forest, UTZ, 4C, Café Practices and Fair Trade, are the result of this permanent effort.
