GSCA - GARÇA SPECIALTY COFFEE ASSOCIATION
The Association of Specialty Coffee Producers of the Garça Region aims to bring together producers to achieve a larger scale of sales and produce a differentiated, high-quality coffee that allows certifications.
“Coffee with ID”, the association’s registered trademark, will accompany all products placed on the market.
The entrepreneurs are organized in the form of an association, founded on March 15, 2007, and composed of 21 farmers, 18 of whom, or 85%, are family farmers who own or operate agricultural areas that total up to 4 fiscal modules of the municipality and obtain income predominantly from agricultural and non-agricultural exploration of the explored area, using mostly the labor of their own families for their agricultural production and processing, and run their establishment or enterprise with their family. Of the remaining 3, or 17%, are medium-sized farmers. “Coffee with ID” is an agribusiness initiative in the region’s Coffee Chain, carried out by SEBRAE-SP in partnership with local government, with the aim of promoting the integration of coffee producers, increasing their competitiveness and technical capacity to operate in the market.
Since 2007, the Association’s members have participated in a program to improve their coffee, seeking certifications to sell a differentiated product with greater added value.
After being classified by a reputable institution, the coffee of all members will be grouped into batches and stored in a suitable and safe place to facilitate marketing.
Coffees produced by family farmers, who use good practices in the correct application of agricultural pesticides, do not employ child labor in the fields and contribute to the well-being of the community.
Use your “Coffee with ID” brand to differentiate yourself in the market, since the region has a long tradition in growing the beverage.
Producers participate in the Coffee with ID Certification Program, an initiative of coffee growers, educational and research institutions, the Support Service for Micro and Small Businesses of the State of São Paulo – SEBRAE-SP, and other agents involved in coffee farming in the Garça/SP region, one of the main and pioneering coffee producing regions in Brazil.
Seeking to offer the market specialty coffees, with responsible management and the adoption of good agricultural and managerial practices, the different links in the production chain have come together to meet the expectations of the most demanding consumer markets in the world, who seek excellent quality coffee combined with production processes with minimal environmental impact, respecting social and cultural aspects, cooperating for sustainable development.
The Café com R.G. program focuses on continuous improvement.
The quality assurance system will be voluntarily adopted by coffee growers and will be implemented by Certification Bodies (OCs) with international recognition in agricultural certifications that meet the requirements.
SEBRAE hired a consultancy firm specializing in beverage classification. In one of the tests, four producers achieved a score of 82. In other words, they proved to be coffees of the highest quality, to the surprise of the producers themselves, who had never had the opportunity to test their coffee in this way, that is, by an impartial professional who verified the quality of the drink.
The Association of Specialty Coffee Producers of the Garça Region – Garça Specialty Coffee Association, an entity with a legal personality under private law, non-profit, with temporary headquarters at Rua Ribeirão da Garça, number 31, in this municipality and district of Garça, State of São Paulo, founded on March 15, 2007, with an indefinite term, is a representative body of the aforementioned community and its members.
The Association brings together small and medium-sized coffee producers who have been in the business for a long time. Since the association was created and partnerships have been sought with SEBRAE, Escola Agrícola de Garça, Sindicato Rural de Garça, Prefeitura Municipal de Garça, and CATI Casa da Agricultura de Garça, they have been able to improve the quality of their products and the management of their properties. This process began in 2007. The first step was to organize the producers into an association. During this period, through training with an agricultural engineer provided in partnership with SEBRAE, they are preparing to obtain certification, such as Fairtrade. In 2011, the members participated in a two-day event in the city of Bauru, where they were introduced to the concepts of this type of trade and 4c Coffee (the project aims to increase the supply of green coffee produced with sustainability criteria).