The time has come to introduce you to our brand new Heritage Range addition. Welcome to Rachel Parsons – our new women grown coffee from Guatemala.

Thank you to everyone who participated in nominating, voting and helping us choose a northern women to name this coffee after!

From bean to cup – this is a coffee that celebrates female empowerment and we hope you love it as much as we do!

A Bit More About Rachel Parsons & Our La Morena Project Coffee

Rachel Mary Parsons

(1885 – 1956)

Rachel Parsons was an engineer from the North East and a founding President of the Women’s Engineering Society in Britain in 1919.

She was an advocate for women’s employment rights and became a leading member of the National Council of Women, campaigning for equal access for all to technical schools and colleges regardless of gender.

Rachel Parsons was the clear winner in a vote on who to name our La Morena women’s coffee after; and no wonder, what she stood for and what La Morena aims to achieve, is all about empowering women – a very fitting match.

La Morena

Country: Guatemala
Region: Huehuetenango
Producer: 22 Women Smallholders
Altitude: 1,400 – 1,600 M.A.S.L.
Variety: Bourbon, Catuai, Caturra
Process: Fully Washed & Sun Dried

Chocolate – Subtle Florals – Orange Juice – Sweet

La Morena is a project coffee for gender equality and showcases the work of 22 women farmers across Guatemala.

In Guatemala, coffee has long been a male-dominate industry and gender equality remains a challenge. It is still unfortunately very difficult for women in Guatemala to compete and thrive in the coffee world. However, produced exclusively by female farmers, La Morena is a Volcafé Way coffee aiming to change this.

La Morena a coffee from Huehuetenango, one of Guatemala‘s three non-volcanic regions, and also the highest and driest one, making it one of the best to grow coffee. Since they joined the program ran by our green bean suppliers, the farmers have increased the quality of their coffee, increased their yields, and, as a consequence, started earning more. In teaching them best practices, their farms are turning out excellent coffee and becoming viable businesses.

Our green beans supplier’s sister company in Guatemala also works with Wakami, a local foundation dedicated to the empowerment of women through the creation of small business models that contribute to the sale of Guatemalan handcraft products. By providing women artisans with skill training and income opportunities, they are able to help transform cycles of poverty into cycles of prosperity. For each pound of La Morena coffee, 15 cts is donated to Wakami – that is a bit more than 22$ pro bag.

We look forward to hearing your feedback on our new Rachel Parsons coffee and hope you enjoy it as much as we do! Go get yourself a bag of our delicious new Guatemalan women’s grown coffee here!

Here’s to all the women who support & inspire us every day!!

Carina x