Finca Sophia

The story

Finca Sophia was founded in 2008 by a group of partners, including Equator Coffees co-founders Helen Russell and Brooke McDonnell, alongside Willem Boot and David Pohl. The team transformed a rugged, unplanted vegetable farm in the cloud forests of Panama into a high-elevation coffee estate. The farm was established as an experimental project to test the limits of coffee cultivation at extreme altitudes.

Challenges

Growing coffee at elevations exceeding 2,000 meters presents significant environmental hurdles, including cool temperatures and limited sunlight. The farm must navigate these extreme conditions to successfully produce high-quality harvests.

Innovations

The farm utilizes meticulous, small-scale processing techniques, including a specialized dark room drying process to slowly reduce moisture levels. They also focus on ecological regeneration and maintain a commitment to social sustainability by providing living wages and covering medical and educational costs for their workers.