El Conacaste |🥇1st Place

Finca El Conacaste is located in Cantón El Limo de Montecristo, Metapán, Santa Ana, El Salvador, within the Alotepec-Metapán mountain range. The farm borders the Montecristo National Park and lies in the Subtropical Humid Forest life zone, at altitudes between 1,000 and 2,000 meters above sea level. It receives approximately 2,181 mm of rainfall annually.

Flora: The farm includes plantations of ocote pine (Pinus oocarpa), cypress (Cupressus lusitánica), and natural forest with species such as oak, laurel, guarumo, lion hand, cedar, pepeto, and others.

Fauna: The ecosystem supports wildlife like gray squirrels, armadillos, raccoons, rabbits, deer, toucans, hummingbirds, hawks, snakes, frogs, and many bird species.

Environmental Conservation: Reforestation efforts began in 1996, converting pastures into a thriving ecosystem with pine and cypress trees. Renewable energy is used via solar panels and small hydro turbines. Herbicides are not applied; organic practices are favored.

Fertilization: Three applications during the wet season using formulated nutrients.

Processing: Natural process

Cultural Information

• Ownership: CHOUCRI, S.A. de C.V., established by Piero Rusconi Gutiérrez, Carmen Elena Bolaños de Rusconi, Mario Cristiani Goodall, and María Eugenia Choussy de Cristiani in 1996.
• Community Impact: The farm provides employment to residents of the Majaditas Canton, helping reduce environmental pressure on the national park.

Farm History

El Conacaste spans approximately 300 blocks. From its inception, the vision was to conserve natural areas and improve the watershed through strategic reforestation. In 2014, prompted by a coffee industry expert, the farm began producing specialty coffee. Over the years, various exotic varieties were introduced including:

• Pacamara (from 2014 onwards)
• El Carmen
• Gesha
• Borbón Amarillo
• Pache Colí
• Kenya
• Java

Today, the goal is to manage 60 manzanas with exotic coffee varieties.

COE Participation: Second time

Social Media

• Facebook: /fincaelconacaste
• Instagram: /brunate.sv