Vera Espindola Rafael on the Economics of Coffee in Mexico | Re:co Symposium Seattle 2017

With a bachelor’s degree in international business and a Masters in Development Economics, Vera started researching the value chain (value attribution) of snow peas and coffee for Anacafé in Guatemala. From here she started to work for UTZ, an NGO focusing on sustainable farming practices, improving working conditions while taking better care of the environment. After overseeing the coffee program in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, Vera moved on to Latin America specialization, where she oversaw the program activities for the coffee, cocoa, and tea program. The main focus was on up-scaling the program with partners, defining and coordinating implementation and monitoring the projects in the region.
Since April 2016, Vera has continued on her professional path with the Secretary
of Agriculture in Mexico (SAGARPA); in October 2015 SAGARPA initiated the ‘Plan Integral de Atención al Café’ (Plan for the Care of Coffee) with the overall objective to boost production of the Mexican coffee sector to 4.2 million bags by 2018-2019 in a sustainable manner. As Sustainability and Shared Value Director for the Coffee Program, Vera is focused on harmonizing the elements of sustainable coffee production in the ‘Plan’ as well as overseeing the market strategy. Since October 2015, Vera has also been a member of the Sustainability Council of the Specialty Coffee Association.