San Lazaro Coffee is committed to our quadruple bottom line:
PEOPLE
PURPOSE
PLANET
PROFIT
Purpose
While we aim to grow world-class coffee, our greater purpose is to provide meaningful, transformational employment. We live out our Christian faith daily through our workplace culture—built on compassion, respect, and the belief that every life has eternal worth.
People
We believe people matter more than profit. Our mission begins with empowering women through dignified work. That’s why our female-led team earns wages nearly double the regional average, allowing them to dream bigger and live better. Their expertise and commitment are poured into every cup, producing coffee that doesn’t just taste good—it changes lives.
Planet
We take seriously our role as stewards of the earth. Our farm is home to the source of the Rio Coco Segovia, one of Central America’s most vital rivers. We cultivate our coffee without harmful chemicals, protect our employees from dangerous exposures, and care for the land using eco-friendly machinery, organic fertilizers, and wastewater treatment systems. Our shade-grown methods preserve the region’s flora and fauna, maintaining biodiversity in a delicate ecosystem.
Profit
We chose to forgo Fair Trade certification not because we lowered our standards, but because we surpassed them. Rather than pay for a label, we use those funds to invest directly in our workers and small-scale producers. By processing, exporting, and warehousing our own beans, we eliminate the middleman and ensure profits return to the people and communities where our coffee originates.
Our Beans
Two Varieties - Two Unique Processes
Caturra Variety
This Arabica variety offers smooth citrus accents and chocolate notes, refined through a classic fermented-washed process that emphasizes clarity and brightness.
Catimor Variety
Naturally dried with the fruit intact, our Catimor is bursting with deep cherry, chocolate, and subtle plum. A labor-intensive process reveals complex flavors rarely found in this regional staple.
Building a Better Future, One Farm at a Time
For years, small coffee farmers in the La Botija Mountains of southern Honduras have faced the same problem. They could grow good coffee and work hard to care for their land, but when harvest came, they had very few options for selling it. The farms are small and scattered throughout the mountains, the roads are difficult, and many buyers simply didn’t find it worthwhile to make the trip.
Beyond the Harvest
While our farm provides year-round employment for our permanent team, harvest season creates a need for additional hands. During those busy months, women and men from neighboring communities join us to help bring in the crop. It's one of the ways our farm creates opportunity that extends well beyond our own workforce.
Unity Forged In Fire
On the night of April 30, flames appeared on the mountain that San Lazaro Coffee calls home. What began as an intentional act of arson quickly became a threat in the peak of Honduras’ dry season. After nearly five months without measurable rain, the mountain was a tinderbox, and the fire spread quickly through the steep terrain surrounding our coffee farm.