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Travelogue of travels to the Matagalpa region and Selva Negra Author: Dave Schacht |
In the hills of Matagalpa ... I sat in the Mercado Mayoreo waiting for the bus for Jinotega. My big green backpack read like a neon sign -- "come talk to me and see where I'm going." Sure enough, during the five hour wait for the bus to leave (it was missing a tire and hissing pungent black smoke when they started selling tickets), I had a small conversation with most of the 50 other people riding on the bus. Many were in Managua trying to sell something (food, clothes, etc.) because, as they said, it was hard to make money in Matagalpa/Jinotega. The Matagalpa region is considered the "heartland" of Nicaraguan coffee production and so has been hit particularly hard by the plummeting world coffee prices. I had promised NOT to ride the Central American buses at night, but I had to toss a coin on this one -- stay another night in murky Managua or venture out to where there would at least be fresh air! I chose the latter and crossed my fingers as the bus plowed along winding roads in the rain and darkness (yes, only one headlight was working). They dropped me off a few hours later by the side of the road, next to a Somoza Tank from the time of the war. It had been abandoned up in the hills and now serves as the monumental entrance to La Selva Negra mountain resort. Selva Negra ("Black Forest") is a coffee plantation / organic farm / hotel nestled on 1,000 acres in the high mountains north of Matagalpa. It is known for its incredible coffee ($16/lb. at Dean and Deluca in New York), but more than that, it is know for the ingenuity of its owners and somewhat maticulous sustainability of its production. I walked in the misty moonlight (as it was not raining up here, but rather the filled with fast moving, thick patches of fog) down the 2 km road that winds through the coffee plantation. At last I found the main lodge, and my cabana -- a bavarian style cabin nestled up against the tropical forest. Eddy and Mausi Kuhl, descendants of German immigrants who settled in Matagalpa at the end of the 1800s, brought Selva Negra back into the family business in the 1970s. I spent a good deal of time talking to both Mausi and Eddy -- who seem to always be looking for each other even though they both carry hand-held radios. Eddy caught me at lunch and told me much of the family history, his recently published book on the history of Matagalpa, and the pending lecture he was to give that evening in Managua. As it turns out, Eddy Kuhl is well known in Nicaragua not just for his Coffee plantation (the first gourmet coffee in Nicaragua), but for his "first vote cast" against Somoza in a vote of confidence held by the private sector elite in 1978. The Kuhls were anti-Somoza, but not pro-Sandinista, and like many of the people I have met in Nicaragua, fled from their country in the late 1970s for fear of persecution. The next morning, Mausi invited me to ride with her in her pickup and tour the 1,000 acre farm. I think we stopped to talk with every one of the 200 workers who work and live at the Selva Negra, as Mausi is the most "hands on" manager I have ever seen. She stopped through the small town that they had built for the workers families, pointing out the school, the health center and the gardens that she helped them to build and continues to finance through the farm. Her truck got stuck in the mud in front of one small house...to my surprise, about 15 kids ran out screaming "Mauis, we´ll help, we´ll help" as they pushed us out of the rut. Selva Negra is the most sustainable farm in Nicaragua: "the only thing we don´t reuse are the chicken feathers," says Mausi, as she describes in infinite detail how every drop of water, all waste, and all parts are used and recycled in various production processes through the farm. The gas in the kitchen, for example, is a mixture of methane produced from cow manure and coffee pulp, and the various coffee-shade trees provide fruit for the workers and leaves for their floral business. With the care that this farm receives, it´s no wonder they maintain such a magnificent quality coffee. The next two days were spent at a local coffee miller and exporter, called "La Esperanza" (hope). Owned by three brothers who returned from living in the States during the war, La Esperanza is the only mill in the area that is trying to expand its operations. In fact, they are opening two new mills this week in Jinotega and Ocotal -- two other famous coffee producing regions. The Mejia brothers are confident that they can find sucess in the dismal coffee business -- and are trying to transfer that confidence on to their employees. Last year, they sponsored a trip to the best resort in Nicaragua (Montelimar) and this year put on a huge barbecue at the Mill (an event to which I was invited!). They maintain a baseball and soccer team, who both lead the region this year...and can often be found on one of the coffee-drying patios playing soccer with their workers. This is an election year in Nicaragua, and as such, many are worried about a deepening of the crisis. Money is fleeing the country, ´just in case´ and so many coffee farmers are finding it exceedingly difficult to get credit (the market was already tight). Most farmers can no longer afford fertilizers ... making them by default organic ... but destroying their chances for a good crop. The Mejia brothers were telling me that several plantations up in the hills surrounding Matagalpa were taken over during the revolution by people with no background in coffee production and no desire to invest during the hard times. Consequently, many workers find themselves without pay...and the traditional barter of work for food that has sustained many families during the tough times before, are not always being practiced. This week, one thousand ´campesinos´ came down from the hills and sought refuge in Matagalpa´s main square. They claim that there is no work, and that the coffee plantations are no longer offering food. There is widespread fear that many will starve. The causes of this human disaster are quickly being politicized in the campaign...and some fingers are pointed to deliberate manipulation of coffee workers in order to sway votes (meaning, politically active coffee owners are intentionally forcing workers off their lands and into the towns). Regardless of the true nature of the disaster, it is indicative of the degree to which coffee plays the pivotal role in rural Nicaragua, where 30% of all employment is related to the coffee industry. I'm heading for Guatemala after this, so will send a report after the next adventure... All my best, |
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