SWISSAID Brings Hope To Colombian Cardamom Farmers.

It took several years of hard work but finally it had paid off and Colombian Farmers are elated.

The SWISSAID federation has given the green light to the cooperative of Colombian farmers from Caramanta to begin growing cardamom in what it will be at first 40 hectares of land in the south east region of Antioquia.

SWISSAID officials visited the land around september of 2011, investigated thoroughly about the project and the viability to make of it a program that would help the community most importantly.


For those who don't know about SWISSAID, One of Switzerland’s leading aid organizations; founded in 1948. They are involved in cooperative development projects in nine countries, try to influence policy-making on development in Switzerland, and inform people about the causes of poverty and underdevelopment. They have 122 staff worldwide, 31 of whom work in Switzerland.


Here an excerpt taken from their website explaining their vision:

Farmers Cooperative In Caramanta

"At  SWISSAID, we believe that everyone is equally entitled to prosperity and to contribute to and participate in the beauty of our world. Participation means codetermination, cooperative creation and shared responsibility in regards to other people, society and the environment. Sustainable development that respects human dignity is possible only if women and men are on equal terms. Cultural diversity and respect for other beliefs and ways of doing things are an important ingredient for quality of life. Inequality, poverty and suffering are not determined by fate. We believe that it is possible for us, as human beings, to use our abilities to bring the vision of a more peaceful and just world into being. The only things missing are insight and the willingness to make the necessary changes"

Cardamom Plantation

"The most remarkable aspect about this project is the social impact that is generating" says one of the project precursors. Mr. Alonso Munera, who's been in the Cardamom business for many years and foresees a remarkable future for Colombian Cardamom over the next decade.

Cardamom in Caramanta grows next to coffee plants and under the shadow of trees, with no use of chemicals whatsoever, although is not organic certified yet, it complies with all of the guidelines to be a 100% organic product. that is why Colombian Cardamom is rated amongst the highest quality on the market. it is up to us to make of it the best in the world.

The project means big business, cardamom being one of the priciest spices on the market only behind vanilla and saffron.

The market for Cardamom is expanding, not only in Asia, Africa and Europe but all over the world, Cardamom is becoming more of a household item and less of an ethnic spice these days. Here in New York you can find it in North American Pastries, in Cocktails, in Fusion style couisine, it's the trendiest spice of 2012 according to Mc Cormic, one of the leading spices purveyors in the country.

Its culinary uses are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to talking about the benefits of cardamom, we have written ominously here and here about all the different uses for cardamom, from a medicinal standpoint to a beauty product. the various uses of cardamom are remarkable, no wonder in India is known as the Queen of Spices.

What people most recognize about Colombian Cardamom is its freshness, its taste and aroma and that's where we have to focus our efforts.

it is important for us to understand the quality of our product and how can we strive to make it even better, not only the spice itself, but the whole operation around it. making it as enviromentally sustainable as possible.

If you wish to learn more about our Colombian Cardamom Project in Caramanta, the people behind it and how you ca get involved write us at  sales@merit-trade.com or you can  visit our website www.merit-trade.com.

Colombia Cardamom Project. Part I.

Cardamom  is becoming one of the most relevant sources of income for many farmers in Colombia, who are trying to come up with solutions to the declining prices of coffee and the lack of a sustainable agricultural industry in our country.

Who better than the farmers/producers themselves to share their experiences from within.

Below you can find a transcript from the conversation between Antonio Saenz, a Colombian Cardamom producer and Jaime  Munera. an Empresario and exporter of Cardamom to the United States. whom along with Alonso Munera is championing the resurgence of the cultivation of cardamom in Antioquia.

Jaime:

We're here with Mr Antonio Saenz. he has a small farm in the municiple of Valparaiso , located at 1500 mts over the sea level, he has been a coffee grower from a long time, for how long would you say Mr. Antonio.

Antonio:

You could say my entire life. my father brought me to work in the coffee plantations since I was a kid, he thought me everything I know about the business.

Jaime:

how's that worked for you so far. 

Antonio:

well, it's been more of a resignation, once It came the harvest all I did was pay back my debts to the bank and once again I found myself in the same situation, without any money, and going back to the bank to ask for more money for the next crop.

Jaime:

All your hard earned money went straight to the bank

Antonio:

A vicious circle of debt you may say. and I couldn't get out of it cause the bank already owned my coffee production, so I was obliged to harvest the crop. 

Jaime:

Who suggested you to start planting cardamom.

Antonio:

An association called cultivares, a woman, Dr. Tamayo came to town and organized a series of meetings where they introduced cardamom to us. I liked the plant, I thought it was interesting but it took me a while to start planting it due to the lack of recognition, which made it a challenge to find a market for it.

Jaime:

You're right, getting into something completely different

Antonio:

Yeah, something I didn't know very well at the time, I was afraid to make the change from coffee to cardamom.

Jaime:

So, You started to grow cardamom around 2004, 2005?

Antonio:

2005, I took me about three years to finally decide I was going to start growing cardamom.

Jaime:

The cardamom plant starts producing around two and a half to three years. how many plants in production you have right now.

Antonio:

At the moment I have around six hundred and fifty plants.

Jaime:

What is the average of crop per each plant, let's say, on a yearly basis 

Antonio:

Well, in the year 2009, with six hundred and fifty producing plants I got around 5.300 kilos a year. divided into six harvests

Jaime:

That's impressive, that's an average of 900 kilos per harvest. and what was your selling price 

Antonio:

It was relative. prices oscillate, but It has never come down from the price in which I started selling. I remember it was around 1800 pesos per kilo, and from then it started going up to the point we're selling at today. 

Jaime:

Which is

Antonio:

Around 4.700 pesos 

Jaime:

Of course that is because you have really outstanding quality. so, on average, you sold your 5,300 kilos at 3,500 pesos. giving you a profit around 20 million pesos.

Antonio:

That is correct

Part II Coming Next Week.

In Part II of this series, we're going to delve deeper on the cardamom growing practices and also, we'll continue to learn from a cardamom grower such as Mr. Antonio Saenz himself.

Conversation Recorded on January 2010. (prices don't reflect actual market status)

Colombia Cardamom Project Part 2.

Cardamom  is becoming one of the most relevant sources of income for many farmers in colombia, who are trying to come up with solutions to the declining prices of coffee and the lack of a sustainable agricultural industry in our country.

Who better than the farmers themselves to explain us their experiences from within.

Below there's a transcript from the conversation between Antonio Saenz, a Colombian Cardamom producer and Jaime Munera. an Empresario and exporter of Cardamom to the United States. whom along with Alonso Munera is championing the resurgence of the cultivation of cardamom in Antioquia.

Jaime:
Antonio I see that your cardamom plants, the newborns are right next to  the coffee plants.

Antonio:
This knowledge was given to me from a young Coffee producer, his name is Nelson Ibarra. I told him that I wanted to knock down the coffee plants but he persuaded me from doing this explaining that coffee plants will serve as a source of shadow, and will provide shelter for the cardamom plant while it grows and sticks to the ground, I believe it has proved to be the right thing to do.  and at the same time I have been able to grow both coffee and cardamom . which is also a very sound Idea speaking in profitability terms.

Jaime:
It is quite a good strategy indeed,  having a cardamom plantation along with coffee. when the cardamom is growing, in the meantime  you can start harvesting the coffee beans.

Antonio: 
You do have a point, however,  I've decided to focus my entire efforts on the cultivation of Cardamom.

Jaime:
Why is that?

Antonio:
Coffee never gave me the possibility of getting out of debt, it was a vicious circle.  last year I had to refinance a Million pesos on the bank due to the low prices on the coffee, thank God, I had a nice cardamom crop which gave me the opportunity to pay back the million pesos to the bank and on top of that I made a profit of over one million two hundred pesos, something that never happened to me with the coffee.

Jaime: 
That's great news antonio. so, we move along to see the grown up cardamom plants.

Antonio:
Yes, as you can see there's a lot of trees and shadow, one of the most important things for cardamom to grow properly.

Part III Coming Next Week.

Colombian farmers find in Cardamom a way to diversify their crops

Cardamom Plantations in Valparaiso, Colombia

Valparaiso, Located in the southwest of Antioquia, is a town known mostly for its coffee plantations, Over the years it has become the epicenter for cardamom plantations in colombia due to its climate and fertile lands. and its been a blessing for the farmers, first of all, cardamom is one of the most prized spices in the market, as you have read in our website. it has helped the farmers to diversify their crop, making them less dependent on the coffee plantations and thus, providing a more stable income for the community.

Cardamom plants, approximate age of 6 months

Very few people know that Cardamom has been grown in Colombia for more than thirty five years, however, lack of demand and Guatemala's large scale production gave way for coffee to reclaim its ground and take over the few cardamom plantations that were mostly located around the Quindio, Nariño, Antioquia regions.

Alonso, Manager of the Cooperative Farmers project talking to Cardamom growers

About ten years ago cardamom buyers from arab countries came to Colombia looking for cardamom once again, and they asked Alonso Munera, a business man whose past endeavors were focused on the fragrance sector and the fresh fruit market , he knew cardamom from his fragrance background and saw the opportunity to get into the spice market, without thinking it twice, he started along with many farmers what is today the Cooperative of valparaiso.