National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia facts for kids
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| Founded | 1927 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Coffee growers of Colombia |
| Type | Agricultural |
| Focus | Cooperation, Peasants rights |
| Location | |
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Area served
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Colombia |
| Product | Colombian coffee |
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Members
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513.000 |
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Key people
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Roberto Vélez Vallejo |
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Employees
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2,400 |
| Website | www.federaciondecafeteros.org |
The National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (also known as the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation or Fedecafé) is a special organization. It is not for profit and is famous for its "Juan Valdez" advertising. The Federation started in 1927. Its main goal is to help grow and sell Colombian coffee. Today, it helps over 540,000 coffee farmers. Most of these farmers own small family farms.
The Federation has helped Colombian coffee become very successful. It always sticks to its three main goals:
- To protect the coffee industry.
- To study any problems it faces.
- To help the coffee industry grow.
Fedecafé also supports new ideas and research for growing coffee. It gives money to universities and has its own research centers. The Federation also checks the quality of coffee to make sure it is good enough to be sold to other countries.
The famous Juan Valdez character was created in 1960. He helps people know that they are buying 100% Colombian coffee. This means it is not mixed with coffee from other countries. Juan Valdez first appeared in a newspaper ad on January 6, 1960. He was shown as a farmer carrying coffee with his mule named Conchita.
In November 2019, the Federation received an award for helping people fairly. This award was from the Inter-American Dialogue. The vice president of Colombia, Marta Lucía Ramírez, gave them the award.
Contents
How Coffee Came to Colombia
Coffee plants first grew in a place called the Dutch East Indies. This was around the year 1690. The Dutch then sent coffee seeds to their colonies in Surinam. From there, coffee went to French Guiana and Brazil. The French also brought coffee to their islands, Guadeloupe and Martinique, in the Caribbean.
It seems that a group called the Jesuits brought the first coffee seeds to "Nueva Granada" (which is now Colombia) around 1723. People started trying to grow coffee in Colombia in the 1700s. But it was not until the second half of the 1800s that coffee growing became a big business. It created many jobs and brought money into the country.
Coffee seeds arrived in Colombia later than in some other Latin American countries. Historians believe the first seeds came through Cúcuta. They came from the Venezuelan Andes mountains. From there, coffee growing spread across the Santander areas. Then it went to Cundinamarca and other parts of Colombia.
No one knows for sure who brought the very first coffee seeds. Some historians say it was the Jesuit monks. They had farms in places like the "Llanos Orientales" and Valle del Cauca. Other historians say it was Father Romero. He was a priest in Salazar de las Palmas, Norte de Santander. Stories say that Father Romero would tell people to plant coffee seeds in their yards as a way to make up for their sins.
The Growth of Coffee in Colombia
The 1800s were a time of big change for Colombia's economy. It moved from relying on mules, tobacco, and gold to focusing on coffee, railways, and banks. This helped the country's economy grow stronger. Important leaders and pioneers helped coffee growing expand in Colombia. They put their own money and effort into this new business. It was a slow and risky project. Mr. Carlos Pinzón was a very important person. He is seen as the founder of Colombia's modern coffee export business. His coffee business was like an early version of the Coffee Growers Federation. He managed shipments, export orders, and even helped with money.
From 1870 onwards, large coffee farms started to appear. This helped Colombia's economy grow a lot in international trade. The coffee industry became a powerful force for the country's development.
In 1879, the Colombian government passed the Coffee Act (Law 29). This law said the government would help and support coffee growing. They would focus on areas with the best climate and soil. Because of this help, coffee production in Colombia grew hugely. Between 1880 and 1920, it went from 107,000 bags to 2.4 million bags each year. (Each bag weighs 60 kilograms).
By 1920, small farmers had done more to develop the coffee industry than anyone else. For many years, they planted, processed, and sold their coffee. The government hardly noticed them. On the other hand, large farmers started to share their ideas and complaints with the government. They did this through the Agricultural Society of Colombia. At the start of the 1900s, there were about 750 coffee farms. By 1932, this number had grown to more than 150,000 farms.
History of the Coffee Federation
As coffee growing in Colombia became more successful, a group of coffee growers decided to form an organization. They wanted to control the coffee market. So, in 1904, the "Society of Coffee Producers" was created. But it was hard to control the industry and the market. There was too much coffee in the world, prices changed a lot, and World War I made things difficult. Coffee growers, sellers, and exporters in Colombia could not agree on how to organize the industry.
In the Antioquia area, a determined coffee grower named Epifánio Montoya Uribe wanted to create an organization to help coffee growers. He started the "Colombian Coffee Union." His ideas were popular, and the organization grew.
On August 25, 1920, the First National Congress of Coffee Growers met in Bogotá. This meeting was supported by the Agricultural Society of Colombia. Epifánio Montoya led this first congress. Many important people attended. This congress helped set the stage for the creation of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia. They talked about transportation, money, trade, and protecting the industry. The problems were huge, and the congress ended without any big decisions. But the people who attended went home wanting to create a national group to protect the coffee industry.
It took seven years for the ideas from the First National Congress to become real. In June 1927, the "Agrarian Association of Antioquia" decided to try again. They wanted to bring all the coffee growers together. So, the Second National Congress of Coffee Growers met in Medellín in 1927. Former President of Colombia Carlos Eugenio Restrepo gave the opening speech. Twenty-nine people attended, including important political and business leaders. Among them were two sons of Tulio Ospina Vásquez: Rafael Ospina Pérez, who led the congress, and Mariano Ospina Pérez, who later became president of Colombia.
By the end of the meeting, the Second National Congress of Coffee Growers agreed to create the "National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia." The Federation was set up as a private, non-profit organization for trade.
A few months later in 1927, the government passed Law 76. This law put taxes on all exports from the country. It gave the National Federation of Coffee Growers the power to manage all this money. So, the Federation and the government signed a contract on October 15, 1928. The government agreed to give all the tax money to the Federation. This money helped the Federation grow strong. These funds were used to create the National Coffee Fund.
In 1928, the first local group was started. It was called the Coffee Growers Committee of Antioquia. Mariano Ospina Pérez was its first leader. He was also the first person to officially join the Federation.
The first Board of Directors for the new Federation met in Bogotá on August 3, 1929. Its first members included Mariano Ospina Vásquez and Mariano Ospina Pérez. Organizing the national coffee industry was a very important goal for Mariano Ospina Pérez.
In December 1930, the Fourth National Congress of Coffee Growers met in Bogotá. Mariano Ospina Pérez knew a lot about the coffee business. So, the Minister of Industry and President Enrique Olaya Herrera asked him to lead this congress. When the congress ended, everyone voted for Ospina Pérez to be the General Director of the Federation. He held this job for four years, until 1934.
In 1954, Ospina Pérez was chosen to be the President of the Board of Directors. His return to the Federation was important. Under his leadership, the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia made the country's coffee industry strong. It also helped promote Colombian coffee around the world. Colombia became the biggest producer of high-quality Coffea arabica coffee. He built a very strong foundation. Today, the Colombian Coffee Federation helps over 500,000 independent coffee growers and small farmers.
Leaders of the Coffee Federation
The general managers of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia do more than just run a business. They also help create and carry out national plans for the coffee industry. They can even influence the country's overall economic plans. These managers have been part of important groups like the board of directors of the Banco de la República. They also lead diplomatic groups that represent Colombia in international meetings. This means they can also influence foreign policy.
Three of the most important managers of the 1900s were Mariano Ospina Pérez, Manuel Mejía Jaramillo, and Arturo Gómez Jaramillo.
- Ospina Pérez (1930–1934) made the organization stronger. He helped create a national network of warehouses and a bank called "Caja Agraria" to help small farmers.
- Mejía Jaramillo (1937–1958) helped Colombian coffee become famous around the world. He helped create the "Flota Mercante Grancolombiana" (a shipping company), the "Banco Cafetero" (a coffee bank), and the "Compañia Agrícola de Seguros" (an insurance company).
- Arturo Gómez (1958–1982) was a leader in international economic policy for coffee. He helped with the "International Coffee Agreements." During his 18 years as manager, Jorge Cárdenas Gutiérrez was his helpful assistant. Cárdenas Gutiérrez later became the manager in 1983. He handled both good and bad times for the coffee industry. By 2001, he was known as one of the most experienced coffee leaders in the world.
Businesses of the Coffee Federation
The Colombian Coffee Federation has created different businesses to help coffee growers. The most important ones were the "Flota Mercante Grancolombiana," the "Banco Cafetero," and the "Compañia Agrícola de Seguros." Some of these businesses have had money problems, and one was sold. But it is good to know what they did.
Flota Mercante Grancolombiana
The "Flota Mercante Grancolombiana" (Colombian ocean shipping fleet) started in 1946. Its goal was to find new ways to ship Colombian coffee and offer better prices. This would make coffee cheaper and easier to buy in other countries. At that time, one shipping company, "Grace Line," controlled most of the shipping and charged very high prices.
After World War II, "la Flota" helped sell and ship more coffee to Europe and Asia. It also saved a lot of money on shipping costs. Plus, "la Flota" gave a lot of money back to its main owner, the "Fondo Nacional del Café" (the national coffee fund).
In the 1990s, shipping became more efficient and competitive worldwide. Big shipping companies started working together. To compete, "la Flota" partnered with a Mexican company called "Transportacion Marítima Mexicana" in 1996-97. The "Fondo Nacional del Café" bought 40% of the new company, which was called "Transportacion Marítima Grancolombiana."
El Banco Cafetero
"El Banco Cafetero" (the bank for coffee growers) was started in 1954. This happened because "la Caja Agraria" (another financial group created by the Federation in the 1930s) was not helping coffee growers enough. This new bank was created to help pay for growing, harvesting, processing, transporting, and selling coffee and other farm products.
Eventually, the bank had over 300 branches across Colombia. Its money made up 10% of all banking money in the country. It handled over 1.7 million bank accounts. It became the third largest bank in Colombia. It offered all kinds of financial services to many different businesses.
Compañia Agrícola de Seguros
The "Compañia Agrícola de Seguros" (agrarian insurance company) was created in 1952. The Coffee Federation decided to start this insurance company because other companies were charging too much. They were charging high prices to insure coffee stored in warehouses and during transport.
The company later offered more services. It covered risks for growing crops, accidents, cars, life, and health insurance. It offered these to all members of the Coffee Federation. It had lower prices and better benefits. The company lost a lot of money during the earthquake that destroyed Armenia. This was because many coffee growers lived in that area.
The National Coffee Fund
The "Fondo Nacional del Café" (FNC) has been very important for Colombian coffee for many years. It helps create and carry out plans for the coffee industry. The FNC has two main parts for investing money: the stabilizer fund and the investment fund. The stabilizer fund manages money for how coffee is handled and sold, and for its prices. The investment fund manages money for the Federation's businesses. It also provides loans and money for coffee growers to produce coffee.
In the 1900s, Colombia became the top producer and seller of high-quality, mild, washed coffee in the world. This was a big achievement. It happened because private businesses, trade groups, and the Federation's organizations all worked together. The successful way Colombian coffee is produced and sold is a good example. It combines efficient private businesses with smart economic plans from the government. This way of doing things has become a model for over fifty coffee-producing countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The 2000s have brought new challenges for the coffee industry. These include changing international prices, weaker international agreements, and more coffee being produced by Brazil and Vietnam. To stay ahead, Colombia needs to be more efficient and produce more. This means investing in new technology, better roads and buildings, training, and replanting coffee trees. This is where the Federation and the FNC are very important.
A plan to update and improve the coffee industry in Colombia needs about two billion dollars. This money needs to come from inside Colombia and from other countries. The Colombian coffee organizations are facing new challenges from global trade and changing money values. They are also dealing with economic uncertainties. New technologies are being used in online selling, production, and quality control. This is to help lower costs and produce more coffee. History shows that the coffee industry in Colombia is always changing and adapting. It will continue to lead with new ideas and good results.
Trademarks and Patents of the Federation
The FNC owns several special names and symbols, called trademarks, for its products. Its first trademark, "Juan Valdez", was officially registered in the United States in 1960. The words "100% Colombian coffee" were registered in 1969. The name "Juan Valdez" and its special design are protected around the world. They are registered in many countries, including Europe and the United States. Other trademarks registered in the U.S. include Buendia, Variedad Castillo, and Juan O’Clock. Many of these are also registered in European countries.
The FNC also applied for a patent for a new invention. This invention is about a protein from a small beetle that harms coffee berries. They applied for this patent in the U.S. and also through an international system. They have also applied for it in Europe and Japan.
See also
In Spanish: Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia para niños
