The Comité de Cafeteros del Cauca, or Cauca Committee of Coffee Growers, is the Cauca arm of the FNC, the Colombian Coffee Growers’ Federation. The FNC, and by default it’s Cauca subsidiary, is a private, not-for-profit trade organization.
The importance of the FNC in making Colombian coffee what is it today, and what it has been for a couple of generations, cannot be understated. A hallmark feature of this institutional infrastructure and market linkage is the purchase guarantee. This service is often taken for granted in Colombia, but it is the quintessential economic safety net for all Colombian coffee producers and the envy of growers across the globe and guarantees an outlet for any quantity of coffee at a price representing a generous share of the commercial export value.
In addition to the commercial function, the roles and responsibilities of the Comité del Cauca are many and varied. It is an important part of the marketing and positioning of coffee from Cauca that allows the purchase guarantee to be honored and periodically organizes quality competitions to attract attention from the market and motivate producers. The Comité also plays a role in several other aspects of the coffee sector in their department including the transfer of technology, technical assistance, and the transition to more environmentally sustainable growing and production practices, among many others.
“Quality is the reflection of the producers. They have committed themselves to quality. They have been processing coffee correctly. They have adopted the notion that it pays to produce quality”
