The kismet meeting of Pacita Juan, President of the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA) in the Philippines, with then IWCA President Phyllis Johnson started the cause of IWCA Philippines “to get more women to access markets and to let women get the full value of their work in coffee.” Juan said, “It has been a good seven years.”

Chapter heads of IWCA

Another fateful meeting right after was with Princess Kumala Sug-Elardo, the chair of a women-led multipurpose cooperative in Panamao, Sulu. Then there was a gathering of several women leaders passionate about coffee—including café owners Lot Manalo-Tan and Reena Francisco, research professional Josephine Ramos, and coffee processor Christine Abellon—that united and formed the IWCA Philippines chapter.

As beautiful as the coffee process is—from sourcing beans to planting to harvesting to roasting—the IWCA story unfolded beautifully to reveal how a single coffee bean can bring women to work together towards one purpose. Women are at their best when they come together. As a team, like clockwork, exhibited their coffee expertise, the “Women in Coffee” (WIC) brand came into fruition. Imagine each woman as a color in an exquisite tapestry, weaving across one another, either supporting or taking the lead. What a vivid and creative picture it brings!

IWCA-Philippines founders

Juan recalled how each one beautifully wove in together: “We met Ross Alonso, a Robusta farmer from Batangas; Noemi Dado and her daughter Marielle, who wanted to plant coffee in Benguet; Imelda Ahalul-Dagus, who started Dennis Coffee Garden in Zamboanga; Gold Quetulio, who would take care of our membership campaign; and many others who signed up because they believed in our advocacy.”

Imelda Ahalul-Dagus

Every year since 2012, Sug-Elardo has promoted during the harvest season the “Pick Red” campaign in Sulu as Juan and Nicky Matti would do the same in Benguet. The years 2014 to 2016 saw the purchase and transport of jute sacks to the Cordilleras. The coffee beans, in all forms such as parchment, green or roasted, were also purchased for the WIC brand. The brands Sulu Royal Coffee of Sug-Elardo and the Commune of Ros Juan were also launched.

The best part was providing jobs for women and encouraging them to participate in the advocacy with their coffee skills and talents. To continue building the women and the coffee culture, IWCA partnered with other agencies and NGOs; ACDI/VOCA, ECHOsi Foundation, and the DA’s Gender and Development (GAD) Office. Together, IWCA and its partners developed trainings under the “Women in Coffee” banner.

IWCA traveled to Davao, Butuan City, Sagada, Sultan Kudarat, Ilocos Sur, Nueva Vizcaya, Cavite, Ifugao, and Kalinga to communicate coffee about, with and through women. There were quality coffee talks from all sectors, from women farmer groups to women cuppers to women tasters.

With the involvement of USAID’s Green Invest in 2018, IWCA has now gained momentum after a decade’s work. IWCA conducted studies for women in the coffee sector in the country and internationally through the International Institute for Environment and Development’s (IIED) commissioning to research and write case studies for journals. IWCA Philippines has grown and extended its reach with esteemed international partners such as the ASEAN Coffee Federation, who opened its conference and exhibition doors for IWCA in Cafe Asia in Singapore (March) and in the THAIFEX in Bankok (May).

Truly, the role that women and coffee continue to play together is this: “The mission is not just to upgrade the quality of coffee, but to use it to uplift the lives of the people in the community.”

written by Ann Kuy

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“There is value in being part of IWCA PH,” Juan continued. “This is for women, not just in the coffee farms but for women throughout the supply chain. So we also engage processors, roasters and cafe owners who are all women.”

Imelda Dagus of Dennis Coffee Garden―an IWCA PH member since 2013―wholeheartedly agrees with Juan’s vision for IWCA PH. She said, “It has given me inspiration, having met different women who have been successful in the coffee business, be it in retail or roasting. You can easily network with women in the same industry who can help you build your business.”

Imelda Dagus (Photo by Keith Dador)

Apart from the seminars that IWCA PH provides, Dagus is thankful for the connections she has made with the suppliers. Finding suppliers for the many things you need in a big cafe is a challenge as well,” she said. Through the networking opportunities IWCA PH has presented to her, Dagus continues with her mission of “preserving the coffee culture of the Tausug people, and sharing it with the rest of the world.”

For Commune‘s Ros Juan, IWCA PH made her coffee world bigger when she learned about women in big producing countries and meeting women from different parts of the coffee supply chain.

Coffee at Commune (Photo by Ricky Ladia)

She also found inspiration with fellow IWCA-PH member Princess Kumalah Sug Elardo and what she has achieved in her community by “not just uplifting lives of people in her community, but bringing peace.

” The mission is not just to upgrade the quality of coffee, but to use it to uplift the lives of the people in the community.

Sulu Royal Coffee of Princess Kumala (Photo by Keith Dador)

IWCA PH has been actively conducting seminars to support farmers, women leaders, and organizations to access new technologies in coffee and new ways of marketing coffee.

Princess Kumala (Photo by Keith Dador)

IWCA PH’s “Women in Coffee” seminar held in Davao last year tackled a variety of topics such as “Quality Coffee, Empowering Women Through Quality” under Princess Kumala, Programs on Gender discussed by ACDI/VOCA, “An Introduction to Markets” with Ros Juan, as well as “Technical Sessions on Processing and Cupping” with Jennifer Rimando.

“IWCA PH invites women in the coffee sector to become members, so their coffee can not only be sold here, but exported also,” Pacita Juan stated. “That’s why there is something we call women in coffee. Having women in coffee spells the difference in harvesting, sorting, and processing coffee.”

For more information about IWCA PH activities and membership, follow IWCA Philippines Women in Coffee on Facebook.
Email: iwcaphils@gmail.com
Mobile: (0917) 800-1899
www.womenincoffee.org

(article by Marilen Fontanilla)

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The Philippine Coffee Board, Inc. (PCBI) and ECHOsi Foundation, with Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), is part of the Great Women Project 2. The groups have been conducting training sessions for women in the coffee value chain since October 2017.

Training in Davao (October 2017)

Training in Butuan (November 2017)

The call is for quality coffee production by gathering women coffee producers and training them to know what it takes to make good coffee even better.

PARTNERS IN TRAINING
There are a lot of partners who have been involved in making these trainings a reality. The Department of Agriculture (DA) Gender and Development (GAD) central office, headed by Jojo Badiola and Lorna Villegas, rounded up women farmers in every region and around the areas where the trainings were held.

The third of a series conducted in Sagada, Mountain Province, had around 40 attendees who participated in cupping or tasting coffee along with Coffee Q grader Jennifer Rimando who hails from the area. Rimando also did the first two sessions in Davao City and Butuan City late last year.

Training in Sagada (January 2018)

Rimando reminded the farmers that “after harvesting is when the tedious work starts.” In English and native Ilocano, the women shared their experiences with the time it takes to make good coffee. A group from Tuba, Benguet chimmed in, “That’s how we won the Kape Pilipino, or at least placed in the top ten.” Shirley Palao-Ay proudly showed off a copy of The Ultimate Coffee Guide produced by PCBI, where winners’ names were published.

The other few gentlemen in the group were from another cooperator, Peace and Equity Foundation Inc. (PEF). Their work in coffee has been largely in the Cordillera region, by encouraging social enterprises to borrow or co-invest in PEF in developing their coffee businesses.

THE POWER OF CONVERGENCE
“It’s about convergence,” Juan exclaimed. “ECHOsi cannot do it alone. We have experts and experienced operators who are members of the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA-Ph), PCBI, PEF, DA-GAD, Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech), and sometimes the local government also pitches in,” she continued.

Through PCBI, Great Women Project 2 found a good product in coffee. It is something that women can relate to and where they can play important roles in the industry. “Women make better tasters as biologically they have more sensory glands than males,” Juan said.

Meanwhile, Ros Juan, owner of Commune Café in Makati and IWCA-Ph member also told the farmers what roasters look for in coffee. “We need to see the green beans with the right moisture and almost zero defects,” she stated. The younger Juan has been buying local coffee for five years, when she started her café.

“Through these sessions I am able to meet the farmer directly and I am able to tell them what I need,” Ros continued. The quality of the meager amount she has been getting from Benguet has improved after the visits she and PCBI made to the community. “They even put their names on the coffee bags because they are proud of the sorting they did,” she added.

THE IMPORTANCE OF COFFEE TRAINING
What is the significance of coffee training? The country imports most of what the country consumes. There is a lack in production and with the little amount produced, quality has to be improved so farmers can get better prices. Palao-ay can now sell her ranked coffee from P400 per kilo, up from P250 pero kilo a few years ago. “The KP winning made my coffee more premium,” Palao-ay recalled.

As the Philippines only produces 35,000 metric tons and consumption or demand is 135,000 metric tons, there’s a lot of room for women to sort their coffees, taste them, and sell them at a premium. PCBI and ECHOsi, through Great Women 2, are helping these women find their specialty markets.

The next session happening in early March will be in Tacurong, Sultan Kudarat in cooperation again with DA-GAD, PEF, IWCA-Ph, and PCBI’s staunch partners, ACDI/VOCA and USDA.

What about Regions 1 and 2? “We’re going there and this time, not only with women but with men as well,” Chit Juan smiled as she gathered her coffee kits for the next event.

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