Producer Profiles
FEDECARES - Federación de Caficultores de la Region Sur
FEDECARES serves as a focal point of the local coffee growing community, bringing together and educating members of small cooperatives from around the region. Today, it is comprised of 26 smaller groups, 184 base associations with 7,800 members within the whole Federation. All members are located in the southern regions of the Dominican Republic.
Quotable
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Before we discovered Fair Trade, I worked myself to exhaustion with no gain. Once the organization began to sell my coffee at the Fair Trade price my situation changed. Now my three sons are in high school, and I want to continue to sell my coffee at the Fair Trade price so I can provide them with a university education. ” Feliciano Lara Santana, FEDECARES Member
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The impact of Fair Trade doesn’t just refer to the possibility for a family to earn more from their harvest, but rather through the organization, they become the protagonist in their own development. Fair Trade offers us the opportunities with which we can positively influence the construction of a more equitable society. ” Rufino Herrera Puello, FEDECARES Member
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Programs
Construction of new health center
FEDECARES has built new health centers, provides necessary medicine for its members, and has programs to train its associates in first aid practices.
Premiums for cost of organic certification
Fair Trade premiums have been used to cover the costs of organic certification.
Scholarships for education and equipment
The association gives scholarships to members’ children, provides local schools with sporting equipment, and runs an adult literacy program.