Aside from the actual trip there, we got to pick coffee beans while we were there. This was something new for me and gave me such an amazing perspective for how the people at El Porvenir earn a living. Anyone in my family would know how much I dislike picking things, like blueberries. Coffee beans were no exception for me. They're little and it takes forever to fill a basket. I greatly appreciate that I have the choice in my life not to be a coffee picker.
Even more surprising for me, though, was how little money we made from the amount we picked. Between about 20 students we were able to fill one 160-pound bag. It took us about an hour to do this. Renee, one of the community leaders, informed us that we made about $5.
It's unreal to me how little money we made working that hard for an hour AND this is a fair trade cooperative which means that these workers are paid very, very well for the coffee they pick. If this had been any other coffee plantation, it is likely that we'd have earned about a dollar or so for the same amount of coffee. Like I mentioned, this experience was new for me from the last time I came to Nicaragua and I'm glad we were able to do this.
Coffee has taken on a new meaning for me when I think about the workers who struggle to pick enough to feed themselves and their families.
