Carlos Pola descends from a family of coffee farmers. He purchased his first farm, Finca Las Brisas in 1997 while he was working in the textile industry. By 2012, he switched to working in coffee full time. His vision is to produce sustainable specialty coffee by applying his textile industry experience of quality control, efficiency and data management to coffee production on Finca San Antonio and Finca Las Brisas.

The farm has its own lab for experimenting with new processing methods, quality control and educating farm workers in specialty coffee.

Carlos believes in supporting his community and helping as many farmers as possible embrace specialty coffee. He has channeled his passion for traceability into an applicable that traces coffee from the day it is harvested to the shipping lot.

Cherry is selectively handpicked and placed in sealed bags to ferment anaerobically for 3 days. Then, cherry is floated and laid on raised beds to dry. Cherry is raked frequently to ensure even drying. It takes approximate 26 days for cherry to dry.

Dried cherry is stored on the farm for several days and then transported to Cooperative La Cuzcachapa in Chalchuapa, Santa Ana to be prepared for export.

In line with his focus on ecologically-sound methods, Carlos only uses honey, natural and controlled fermentation processes to help reduce Finca La Antonios’ water consumption. Any water used in processing is carefully treated to reduce its environmental impact. Water is anaerobically fermented in sealed tanks where solids are broken down. This nutrient-rich solution is used to spread the fungi that support symbiotic nutrient uptake in coffee trees.