It is usually assumed that most Brazilian coffee comes from very big farms, however the reality is that about 80% of Brazilian coffee comes from small producers, like Paulo. It’s simply that they don’t have a direct route to roasters, and so their product is sold to co-ops or larger producers who sell it as their own “single estate” or blend it, even if it is a high-scoring single origin.

Paulo Agualetti owns a 4-hectare farm, which is small by Brazilian standards. Even with a very decent planting density of 3,000 plants per hectare, this equates to about 35 sacks per hectare. This year, we bought around 2000kg out of the total harvest from Paulo's farm, supporting smallholder farms.

When purchasing this coffee, we were immediately impressed by the higher clarity that buying from a single farm has been able to offer us, when compared to community lots that we have tried in the past. Phil, who owns Coffee Cargo, has become an integral part of our Brazilian coffee sourcing, connecting us with exceptional producers like Paulo. Phil has an encyclopaedic knowledge of each farm he works with, and the exceptional care and attention he devoted to the traceability package for each coffee has been a breath of fresh air.

Paulo’s father was a coffee producer, so he grew up learning and understanding the family business. When a small plot with the ideal altitude, aspect and soil for growing great coffee became available in Divinolândia, Paulo acquired it and began producing coffee on his own.

Having a farm with great terroir isn’t enough to produce high-scoring coffee on its own, though. It takes commitment, expertise, a lot of hard work and a desire to turn the opportunity that the land presents into an exceptional final product. It is a risk, but it is one that is paying off for Paulo. Paulo grows and processes his coffee himself, with a little help during the harvest from his brother. He is dedicated to his craft, and by connecting him directly to roasters he can be properly rewarded for that dedication, and his excellent final product.