San Fernando, Isaac Espinoza Geshe Washed

Isaac Espinoza Flores has spent 43 years growing coffee, drawing on knowledge passed down through his parents and grandparents and refined through decades of practice.

Based just west of Machu Picchu, San Fernando began in 2001 with just 70 members, and by 2004 had established a commercial relationship with Equal Exchange that continues today. Through the 2010s, the group grew in size and capacity, achieving international certifications and eventually separating from COCLA—a large regional union of cooperatives based in Quilabamba that had dominated Cusco’s coffee trade for decades. By 2020, alliances with NGOs and lenders such as Agriterra, Root Capital, Shared Interest, and eventually Progreso helped strengthen San Fernando’s financial and technical foundation.

Now with over 450 members, San Fernando operates as a mature and transparent organization with strong governance, agroecological commitments, and a deliberate emphasis on equality and Indigenous identity. Its cupping lab supports feedback and lot separation, and the coop currently exports both 85-point community blends and 86.5+ microlots.