Costa Rican Coffee Cooperation43

The Cooperativa Agrícola Industrial Victoria R.L (Coope Victoria) was Costa Rica’s very first cooperative. Its roots date back to 1905 and the German-owned Finca Victoria, which was primarily a coffee and sugarcane farm. In order to process these products for export and internal consumption, the then-owners installed a mill on the premises. As the milling capacity was far greater than the farm’s needs, they began buying the products of neighbouring small and medium sized farmers.

When the Second World War began, the German owners could not continue operating their private mill, which brought about a great deal of consternation among the farmers who were relying on them as buyers. The implications for the region, economically speaking, were great. As such, the producers organised and went to ask for help from the state and the state financial institutions. They needed funding to start a cooperative. On October 12, 1943, Coope Victoria R.L. was founded.

Today the organisation represents approximately 3,000 members, all of whom are small and medium producers of coffee and/or sugarcane from the Western zone of Costa Rica. The coop’s area of influence includes Greece, Poás, Valverde Vega, San Ramón, Alajuela, San Carlos, Naranjo and Atenas. The organisation reaches nearly 15,000 indirect beneficiaries through their various social and environmental sustainability projects. They are considered a driver of economic and social development of the area, generating indirect jobs and lending upward mobility to the local economy.

In addition to enabling access to technical support and inputs, the cooperative runs a variety of other services for members and the surrounding community, including a service station, the Camposanto Garden of Peace Las Mercedes, and the CoopeVictoria Event Center. They also help provide medical services to members and produce bio fuels.