The Marcala coffee region contains part of the Lenca Trail, a 76-mile route winding through Honduras’ western highlands, giving a window into the culture of the Lenca people. Many of the coffee farmers in this region are of Lenca descent and employ traditional methods to coax the best out of soil and trees. Marcala was the first Central American growing area to gain Protected Origin Denomination for coffee.
The efforts of coffee cooperatives such as COMSA have brought about much positive change for the growers in this region. As they’ve worked to promote organic and biodynamic, sustainable practices, they have also been key in the ongoing battle with Roya, leaf rust, which saps coffee plants and eventually kills them. COMSA has recently created a special line of coffee grown exclusively by women farmers and sold under their own special label.