José Julio Nolasco Peñalba (APROCOMSA FLO ID 48213)

Finca Suita is 1 Manzana farm (0.6972 hectares), born on June of 1995. This 26 years old farm is a role model of diversification of productivity in the use of the land. The farm is organic certified through the COMSA cooperative certification. The yield of the farm ranges from 40 to 100 quintals of coffee cherries. The climate at the farm is very chill, between 10° to 22° Celsius. The coffee is grown in a tree shade grown regulated system of trees of plantain and guama, these trees are pruned by hand. The maintenance of the farm includes the manual weeding without chemicals, application of organic fertilizer provided by COMSA. This organic fertilizer contains coffee pulp, chicken manure, ashes, and special sands. At Finca Suita environmentally friendly practices are used to protect the flora and fauna.

Finca Suita is a patrimony of the harmonious marriage between the spouses José Julio Nolasco and his wife María Suita Bautista, who are favored with the resources obtained from the cultivation of the coffee bean. Thanks to God’s will, José Julio Nolasco has lived 78 years and his family sure whishes many more years with him.

The parallel activities at Finca Suita include:
1. Growing tilapia fish at small scale, poultry, and egg production.
2. Cultivation of grains such as corn, kidney beans and fruits (guava, peaches, oranges, and apples) in small scale to satisfy basic needs of the family.
3. Soil maintenance: the soil is protected with shade provided by using the leftovers of the corn and kidney beans and the weeds that are pull from the farm, as they help maintain the moisture in the soil.
4. The farm is protected by a natural barrier since it is surrounded by a forest of pine trees that helps to avoid the negative impact of the strong winds of the area.

OTHER FACTS ABOUT JULIO:
* He retired in the 90’s from the Honduran Armed Forces, after serving for 30 years.
* Together with his wife have 2 sons and 1 daughter, of which the youngest son also has coffee farms and 1 of his grandsons on does have a farm too. Their daughter’s family had a coffee business and farm, their granddaughter
Suita continues in coffee industry.
* José Julio is a 3rd generation coffee farmer, his grandfather was a pioneer in coffee in Marcala, La Paz, Honduras.
Julio inherited his first plot of coffee from his mom Raquel, who inherited from her dad.
Julio is a man with a true disciplined character, even after he retired, he continued running every other day and doing exercise to take good care of his health. He works daily on Finca Suita doing different activities to produce food for his home. He is a Role model and core strength source of the family.