|
What’s In Your
Morning Cup?
Most of us
don’t think much about the origins of that
aromatic elixir that initiates our waking
rituals, steaming life slowly back into us
as we sip. Yet, for one Latina entrepreneur,
the rich aroma of coffee is enhanced by
something much sweeter than sugar. There’s
family legacy stirring in there, brewed for
generations within a traditional rural
community. There’s a lifelong history of
activism, flavored with adherence to the
American Dream. There are entrepreneurial
accomplishments, tinged with the mellow
aftertaste of success. And above all,
there’s the sweetness one experiences when
she is doing what her heart knows is right. |
 |
Meet Astrid Bernstorff, founder of Santa Elena
Coffee Co., Inc., a roasting facility in Texas, and
vice president of marketing at Santa Elena Estate in
Chiapas, Mexico. Santa Elena Estate not only
produces some of the world’s finest coffee, but it
achieves it through agricultural practices that
place it among pioneers revolutionizing the entire
industry behind the world’s morning cup.
Having spent her childhood playing in coffee fields,
Bernstorff was drawn at a young age to the family
coffee business. In college, she completed a project
in which she created an imaginary company that sold
roasted coffee. “I’m pretty traditional,” she
admits, “though in my family, the truly traditional
thing would have been to get married and have my
husband run the family business.”
Bernstorff’s grandfather immigrated to Mexico from
Germany in the 1910s and married a Mayan woman in
Chiapas. After working for most of his life in the
coffee fields, Johann Bernstorff (better known
locally as “Don Juan”) managed to acquire several
coffee plantations by the end of his life. Today,
those plantations are still in the hands of his
granddaughter Astrid’s (mostly male) cousins.
But there’s something that distinguishes the Santa
Elena plantation from the rest, and which has earned
Bernstorff respect and admiration, not only among
her community and family but among leaders in the
international coffee industry and in the global
green movement, as well. As a leader in sustainable
agriculture, Santa Elena has managed to successfully
produce better coffee under better working
conditions with less detriment to the environment
than coffee grown in the traditional fashion — and
all while raking in a profit.
In fact, Santa Elena was recognized by the
Rainforest Alliance as a leader in North America and
a model for coffee growers worldwide. Bernstorff
regularly travels to speak before audiences of
corporate coffee giants from all over the world. A
member of the U.S. National Coffee Association, she
is grateful for the opportunity to dialogue with
these colleagues, incorporating their wisdom into
her own strategies but also affecting their
strategies by sharing hers. “I just show them that
if it’s beneficial for me, it can also be beneficial
for my employees,” she says. “It’s obvious that we
have to know our business in order to fund these
improvements. These practices not only benefit local
communities — they make good business sense.”
Bernstorff’s communication efforts are paying off.
Recently, the world’s largest coffee broker and
leading coffee corporations agreed to buy and sell
certified sustainable coffee.
And just what does “certified sustainable” mean?
Santa Elena is certified by the Organic Crop
Improvement Association (OCIA) and the Rainforest
Alliance. In a nutshell, this means that the farm
complies with certain environmental standards and
uses no chemical pesticides and fertilizers. But
sustainable agriculture at Santa Elena goes much
further. Santa Elena’s mission statement is “to run
a profitable, 100-percent-certified organic
shade-grown coffee farm while practicing
conservation, protecting biodiversity, generating
employment and maintaining positive, mutually
beneficial relationships with local communities.”
|
 |
Astrid Bernstorff
(fifth from left) poses with a nanny,
cousins, her sister Lissette (third from
right) and her grandfather (center) |
What this translates into is better working
conditions: Picking is done in the shade, protected
from direct sunlight; there is no danger of any
exposure to toxic chemicals; workers live in cement
housing instead of trailers; oatmeal is fed to their
children every afternoon. It also translates into
higher salaries, recycled sewage water to prevent
pollution of the nearby creek, and the planting of
canopy trees that, while shading the workers and
crops, also provide refuge for local endangered
wildlife. It translates into a living example of
teamwork, humane labor practices, and respect for
the natural environment. “Chiapas is one of the
poorest states in Mexico,” says Bernstorff. “We see
and feel the poverty and the need. We’re one of the
families that have lived through it. We see the
damage done to our environment, because we’re from
here. This is our home, and we’re part of it.”
Bernstorff’s blend of personal conviction and
entrepreneurial drive was challenged as the roasting
facility made its industrial debut and the Estate
transitioned into sustainable agriculture in the
midst of an economic crisis. In Chiapas, where
coffee has traditionally been the backbone of the
economy, devastating financial conditions have been
destabilizing the community for over 15 years.
“We’re totally at the mercy of Wall Street and the
price they set on coffee as a commodity,” says
Bernstorff.
“Everything is based on what growers can afford.
Crop season may last for four months, but we may
only afford to keep workers two months. All of this
affects the local economy. That’s why the need is so
great. That’s why the work we do is so important.”
Bernstorff ascribes her success as an entrepreneur
to her education in the United States. Having
immigrated to Arizona in the sixth grade, she was
strongly influenced by American values and ideals.
“I really like the idea of getting somewhere in life
by one’s efforts,” she says. “I like the idea of
equality. And I like the opportunity to practice
what I believe in.” While attending St. Edwards
University in Austin, Texas, Bernstorff was a
Greenpeace activist. Today, she serves as a member
of several civic organizations, including a chapter
of the Rotary Club in Austin that works to raise
U.S. consciousness regarding conditions in Chiapas.
Though marriage and kids may still figure into
Bernstorff’s future, it’s not likely she’ll ever
turn over the family business to any husband. She
looks forward to the future of Santa Elena. “We’re
now beginning to grow other crops besides coffee,”
she says. “Soon we’ll be releasing the first batch
of honey with the Santa Elena label on it. It’s all
absolutely transparent. It’s working — you can see
it. There it is, just waiting for the world to find
out about it.”
|
 |
 |
| |
Astrid Bernstorff
A view of the fields of Santa Elena. Photos
courtesy of Astrid Bernstorff |
|
