MIRANTE CAIRO LUCIO CARDOSO
Region – Caconde (Mogiana)
Variety – CATUAÍ VERMELHO IAC 144
Altitude – 1200 m AMSL
Process – Controlled Fermentation
Screen: 16up
Cupping notes – FLORAL, HONEY, RIPE FRUIT, CITRUS, FRUIT LIQUEUR (ALCOHOLIC), INTENSE CITRIC ACIDITY, LIQUEUROUS BODY, LONG AND LIQUEUR-LIKE FINISH
SCA points – 85
Packing – Grain Pro
Farm Facts
People
Families: 06
Employees: 61
People benefited: 16
Environment
Altitude: 1200 asml
Region: Caconde (Mogiana)
Climate: Mild climate (20°C) and dry winter.
Productions
Coffee Area: 180.32
Variety: Mundo Novo | Tupi IAC 1669-33 | Yellow Catucaí | Red Catuaí IAC 144 | Yellow Bourbon | IAPAR | Yellow Catuaí IAC 74 | Yellow Catuaí IAC 47 | Red Catuaí IAC 15 | Acaiá IAC 474-19 | Yellow Catuaí IAC 100 | Yellow Catuaí IAC 17 | Yellow Catuaí IAC 32 | Red Catuaí IAC 24 | Mundo Novo IAC 376-5
Processing Method: Natural, Pulped Natural and Fermented
Grower Profile
Mr. Cairo was born in Guaxupé – MG and is the son and grandson of small producers. The story of Mr. Cairo with coffee started in 1965, when his family moved to the state of Paraná and his father went to work on a coffee farm. At the time, at the age of 12, Mr. Cairo, his two brothers and her mother helped with the coffee harvest. In 1974 he returned to the South of Minas Gerais and, after working in other activities, joined as an employee in a coffee exporting company where he still works. His interest in working with coffee became more evident after joining this company. Mr. Cairo acquired its first 20 ha coffee farm in 1989. In 1999, it was replaced by a new 55 ha property. The current property was acquired in 2003, it is a century-old farm in the production of coffee, located in the Mogiana region and has an altitude and climate that make it possible to produce superior quality coffees. Over these 17 years, Mr. Cairo has been modernizing the farm, replacing old crops, which did not have appropriate varieties, both for production and for quality, with crops with more appropriate varieties.
Production
The planning of crop care is done through an agronomic consultancy specialized in coffee, which does all the planning and monitoring, from planting to post-harvest. The farm conducts cultural treatments with chemical and organic fertilizers (coffee straw and cattle manure), always complying with agronomic recommendations and in line with traceability and sustainability practices (UTZ KAPHE). The use of herbicides to control weeds is kept to a minimum, alternating with manual and mechanical mowing, and pest control is carried out through the monthly integrated pest management (IPM). In between the lines the property uses brachiaria ruziziensis. The farm annually carries out the renovation of crops, around 20 to 25%, by means of esqueletamento and recepa (skeleton and receptions), carried out between July and September. All processes are tracked to serve the certification companies. Mr. Cairo emphasizes that all farming practices are aimed at the sustainability of the property.
Harvest
The planning for the harvest is carried out based on field-by-field surveys. The production estimate is generally based on two forecasts, the first in November and the second in February. Based on the harvest forecast, the demand for labor and machine hours is planned, seeking to adjust the resources for a harvest of a maximum of 4 months (end of May to mid-September). Harvesting begins when the percentage of ripe fruit is around 70%, with 30% of crops being harvested with self-propelled machinery.
Post-Harvest
On the property the coffees are processed in a natural, pulped natural coffee and fermented. The farm`s infrastructure has: washer (mechanical siphons), concrete patio, suspended patio, rotary dryer, static dryer and vertical dryer. All coffees that are harvested on the property go through the washer and are then taken to dry. The coffees remain in the patio until preliminary dry (30-25% (w.b.) moisture content) and are then taken to finish drying in the mechanical dryers. The coffees remain between 5 to 10 days in the patio and then around 20 to 30 hours in the dryer, Mr. Cairo points out that in the dryer all attention is focused on the use of adequate temperatures for each type of coffee. After drying the coffees are taken to woody bins, where they remain in the rest period for around 20 days.
Sustainability
In crops with a steep slope, the terracing system is used, aiming at partial mechanization and combating erosions. The farm has an environmental plan, with a reforestation schedule in all areas of permanent preservation, in addition to all the sources of the farm being surrounded and reforested. All farm employees have free internet in their homes, as well as receiving Christmas baskets as a form of bonus.
Future Projects
The farm constantly seeks to improve procedures to improve the quality of coffee. Mr. Cairo highlights as an innovation carried out on the farm the participation of the Nucoffee / Artisans program, highlighting that among the 383 participants, they were in 38th place. Another innovation that Mr. Cairo points is the use of Drone and GPS in the mapping of areas where new plantations are carried out.
Final Message
Mr. Cairo points out that the partnership between Nucoffee and the farm is very interesting, as Nucoffee offers the technical support and guidance necessary for the production of specialty coffees. The farm`s secret involves hard work, dedication, focus and the constant search for improvement of production processes.