At Finca San Antonio, Carlos Pola combines a family background in coffee with experience gained in the textile industry. Located near Juayúa in El Salvador’s Apaneca-Ilamatepec mountain range, the farm sits at 1,350 metres above sea level. Here, his work centres on quality, traceability and finding practical ways to grow coffee with fewer chemical inputs. Carlos purchased his first farm, Finca Las Brisas, in 1997, while still working in textiles. In 2012, he moved into coffee full time. He brought with him a close attention to detail, applying his knowledge of quality control and data management to both Las Brisas and San Antonio. An on-site laboratory supports processing trials, quality assessment and training for farm workers. He has also developed a traceability application that follows coffee from the day of harvest through to the export lot.

This lot is H2, one of the varieties Carlos and his family call their Farm Hybrids. Derived from Caturra and Timor, these plants have been selected over decades for their resistance to coffee leaf rust, quality and adaptation to local growing conditions. Each year, the family selects which plants to propagate, continuing that work of obse…