- Nelson Vallecillo has participated in more than 10 MOCCA training modules and increased his productivity from 30 to 55 quintals per manzana.
- In Honduras, MOCCA has the support of the Dutch company Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE), which owns numerous beverage brands (coffee, tea and hot chocolate).
- In partnership with the Montecristo Coffee Beneficio S.A. (Becamo), technical assistance is provided to more than 4,900 coffee growers in Honduras.
In San Nicolás, Santa Bárbara, Nelson Edulfo Vallecillo, 55, has dedicated his life to coffee farming, following in the footsteps of his family, who have been growing coffee since the 1950s. Since he started in 1992, Nelson has felt a deep connection with the land and coffee, enjoying every stage of the process, from germination to harvest. For him, seeing the fruits of his efforts is an invaluable reward.
Despite the satisfaction that coffee brings him, Nelson has had to face several challenges over the years, such as pest and disease control and labor shortages, which make managing his farm more difficult. However, his passion for learning and improving led him to join the MOCCA program at the end of 2023.
MOCCA is a 7-year initiative funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) through its Food for Progress Program, which seeks to improve agricultural productivity and expand trade in agricultural products. The MOCCA project is being executed by a consortium led by TechnoServe. Lutheran World Relief leads the cocoa activities.
For an entire year, Nelson participated in more than 10 training modules, where he acquired knowledge on organic fertilizer production, pest and disease control, and advanced grafting techniques, practices that he implemented on his coffee plantation.
“My production increased from 30 quintals to 55 quintals per manzana and I have managed to increase my profits by at least 10%”
Nelson Vallecillo
Coffee producer
Santa Barbara, Honduras
With this additional income, Nelson not only renewed his crops, but also remodeled a house in the urban center of Santa Barbara, thus ensuring a better future for his family. His commitment to continuous improvement and sharing his knowledge has made him a reference in his community, where he is recognized for his generosity and willingness to help other coffee producers.
Nelson is especially happy because, when his parents grew coffee, they always longed to have access to the knowledge and good practices that he now has. The advanced techniques, information and tools he has access to today allow him to improve his production and quality of life, something that would have been a dream for them in their time.
As a father of three children, whose ages range from 20 to 31, Nelson and his wife hope to leave them not only a material inheritance, but also the legacy of hard work, dedication and love for the land.
