Today there are nearly 73,000 coffee growers in Costa Rica, 45,000 of whom are members of cooperatives. Coopeldós R. L. is the second coop in this series on Costa Rican coffee cooperatives.  These coops provide a great measure of competition to the major growers in country.

There are other ways to captilize on these sources.  One is shown by the activity of a new Kirkville, Mo. coffee shop owner, who on July 1st capitalized on a "country of origen" appeal with Costa Rica.  How?  

Gerardo Rojas from his home in Costa Rica is running that shop!  He will visit as often as he can to the shop. But he said Internet and Skype keeps him in close touch with operations.  He said he bought the shop to share some of Costa Rica with Kirksville.

The coffee shop will be called the Costa Rican Café Company. It’s owned by the Alejuela Coffee Company in Costa Rica.  The "Pura Vida" (Pure Life) lifestyle he lives in Costa Rica, and that's the relaxed atmosphere he seeks for the Kirkville,  

A big advantage in getting choice Costa Rican coffee is his locality to and familiarity with the small Costa Rican growers and their coops.  This has a great deal of promise for the coffee retailer as a tactic.  His connection is possible because he lives there and is able to maintain contacts with those supplying his brick and mortar shop.He purchased a cafe and renamed it:  The Costa Rican Café replaced the former coffee shop, Washington Street Java Co.  General, to specific.

The owner brick and mortar shop has in some ways adopted the path of Scenic Costa Rica Coffee and News, our site.  We hope to make more use of the local growers via their coops and are presently formulating specifics.  

We have added to present and future connections with an initial appeal by our website of a charity donation... Coffee sales' profits are donated to a locale Guanacaste, Costa Rican non-profit organization benefiting local low income school kids.  It's supported locally as well by better off residents of the area.

Guanacaste is located in one of the most popular "Pacific Coast" areas of northern Costa Rica.  The poorer kids there hardly have benefited by a dramatic rise in the tourist traffic there.  The organization is called CEPIA, and they offer training to the local youth in skills needed by that tourist industry.  This includes computer skills and basics of education.

While the government of Costa Rica requires school attendance by students, it does not provide a whole lot more than that requirement!  To lower income students, CEPIA is providing  books, clothing, nutrition, transportation... in short all that practical needs to making it to school.

It also provides tutoring to insure success once arriving at the government facility.

By tying this new Costa Rican coffee site to such a worthy cause, and happily doing this, it is hoped that the resources of the site will become familiar and desired by those coming to it.  Yes, at some point I'll have to lower that level of support to CEPIA, but that I don't project for another year.