Silvano Ragi Belineli and Ligia Miranda Belineli are small coffee producers in Três Pontas, southern Minas Gerais, Brazil. Their story begins with Silvano's grandparents, who came from Italy under challenging circumstances."My great-grandmother came at that time, and we were always involved with coffee,"Silvano recalls."I was born amidst coffee. My older brother would pull me in a bamboo basket while our parents picked coffee."

The family's coffee tradition continued through generations. In 1987, Silvano and Ligia inherited their land and began their own coffee journey. They started with a small plot for subsistence farming, selling to cooperatives or intermediaries. As time went on, they joined cooperatives for better prices and stability.

Silvano and Ligia have three daughters who now share responsibilities in the family business. One studies agronomy and is an expert in coffee tasting, another studies nursing, and the eldest handles sales. In 2017, the family specialized in producing and marketing specialty coffees.

Their coffees are 100% Arabica, grown at an altitude of 960 meters in the transition region between the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado of Minas Gerais. The family works under a domestic economy regime and is part of Brazil's federal family farming program. They maintain deep respect for nature, practicing agroecological methods such as intercropping and using organic fertilizers.

One of their daughters, involved in social movements from a young age, connected the family with the Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST). This partnership brought Silvano into the agrarian reform movement and led to selling their coffees in MST's Armazéns do Campo stores across Brazil.

The Belinelis named their special coffee "Chico Amado" after Silvano's father-in-law, who supported 14 children from humble beginnings. This premium coffee is manually picked, ensuring only the best beans are selected.

Today, the family merges traditional knowledge with new technologies, striving for sustainability and preserving their heritage."It's crucial to pass on this knowledge to future generations,"Silvano says,"ensuring they don't lose valuable insights of the past while embracing modern technology for a better future."