Elsa Lucas Escalante
Trapichillo

We visited Elsa Lucas Escalante at her farm in the mountains of Huehuetenango in January of 2019. The long steep ride in the back of the pick up dropped us at her beautiful and tranquil farm surrounded by forests. We followed her up the mountain trail to see her coffee growing under a canopy of a variety of shade trees. This isn’t a farm field like we think about at home. The coffee grows on the steep slope of the mountain and it’s just hard to find a flat place to stand. I can’t imagine how hard it is to pick!

Elsa grew up farming. Her land was handed down to her from her parents, who got it from their parents. She also has some land from her husband. She is 59 years old, a mother of seven children (six living) and a grandmother of 14. Her kids are either in school or working, but they also help on the farm. Growing coffee is hard work! She has diabetes and other health issues. making the work even harder.

Elsa began growing coffee in 2012. She selects her own seeds to start new plants and takes pride in the varieties and quality of her coffee. She grows both organic and conventional coffee and says growing organic coffee is a lot more work! Elsa is part of the women's coffee farmers association. She said she has learned a lot about women’s rights and has attended workshops on a variety of things such as coffee growing techniques. She is happy to sell her coffee to Farmer to Farmer for the higher price she receives.