Certificate of Organic Origins

I.    Introduction

Hill Top Mixed Farming and Agro-forestry Group is made up of 31 Family heads from the following 6 villages - Nkwen, Fundong, Belo, Santa and Ndop in the Noreth West Province and Dschang in the Western Province. It is directed by Madame ANNA Atang and Mr. Stephen NDIFOR.

The traditional authority of a family head is exercised over the entire extended family which averages about 70 individuals.  The average size of a family's coffee farm is approximately 3 hectares.

The combination of a mild climate along with the rich volcanic soil cultivated by a hardworking population has led to the development of agricultural production in this region.  Social cohesion, an important characteristic of the population, has facilitated the formation of groups and associations.  Thus, Hill Top Mixed Farming and Agro-forestry, in its search for better remuneration and because of its unique characteristics, has evolved from a much larger cooperative of over 2000 members.

In this region, weeds in the farms grow rapidly, and when these are removed (a manual process ) each hectare can produce up to 200 kg of coffee.

Coffee, one of the principal export crops of Cameroon used to be subsidized by the State which furnished farmers with fertilizers and insecticides.  At the same time, the State regulated coffee trade: its marketing structure, quality control and pricing.  Since 1988, the withdrawal of government subsidies, the liberalization of the coffee trade and the devaluation of the CFA franc have combined to force small farmers to integrate their coffee into traditional family farms, leading to a less intensive and more "casual" production of coffee.

In effect then, the coffee trees remained, but other food crops were inter-planted between them. The care of these crops indirectly benefited the coffee trees which continued to produce each year.  During this period, interests in the healthfulness and environmental friendliness of organic farm grew into the west. Thanks to this situation, certain informed elite's have encouraged the farmers not only to continue to care for these old trees, but to farm newer parcels while improving the quality of their crops.  These new parcels (aged between 6-7 years ) are the ones that have provided the coffee in this export batch.

The technical formation of the farmers is ensured by other members of their group, the Provincial Delegation of the Ministry of Agriculture in the North West Region and specialists of l'Association de l' Promotion de l'Agriculture Biologique au Cameroun ( ASPABIC : ONG ) - The Association for the Promotion of Organic Farming in ( ASPABIC : NGO ( Non Governmental Organization). Not in possession of certification documents, we were contacted in our triple capacities of sub regional coordinator of the control and certification agency ECOCERT INTERNATIONAL; of founders of ASPABIC and of supervisors of the phyto-sanitary (division of the Ministry of Agriculture) to handle the reception and control of this coffee in Douala.

II.    FARMING

 
For many decades, coffee production has been carried out by small bean farmers in farm parcels of 1000 to over 3000 feet each.  Mixed crop farming of coffee with beans, groundnuts, corn

III.    BERRY PROCESSING

After removing defective berries and impurities, the fruit is de-pulped, washed, and left in special fermentation tanks for 2 days.  These are often washed a second time and any berries which were not stripped of the pulp are separated.

IV.    DRYING

After the above process, the parchment is spread out on mats or tarpaulin and sun dried to between 12% and 14% humidity levels.  This batch of coffee was then transported to the mill for hulling, grading by screen size, (hand-picked) and put into 60 kg jute bags. From Bamenda, a suitably equipped Mercedes truck, driven by Mr. NGUYFOBR, transported the coffee to Douala between 23 and 25 October, 2001.

V.    PRODUCT RECEPTION

Local law requires the systematic phyto-sanitary spraying of coffee prior to exportation, and in order to avoid this, negotiations were held with local authorities who understood the importance and furnished the necessary exemption documents.  A special area was then prepared by sweeping, mopping, drying, and covering with plastic. The coffee was then stacked and covered by tarpaulin thus isolating it from other coffees and any pollution.

VI.    CONTAINERIZATION

On 05-11-01 the coffee was loaded in a pre prepared ventilated container.
Container # 232909-3
Seal # 31510
Number of bags  250

The transporting vessel is MIV MAERSK - ABIDJAN

VII.  POLLUTION AND GUARANTEE OF NON-MIXING

From the field to the container this coffee has not undergone any mixture.

Protection during the transportation and while in transit has been total.

APPENDICES:

A-1: LIST OF Nklwen, Fundong, Bello, Santa, Ndop

A-2: LIST OF FARMERS

NDIFOR, STEPHEN                    FON, MATHIAS
JAM, EMMANUEL                      MBAH, FELIX
ATANG, ANNA                           BONGNI, MARY
NGWA, IVO                                KNONG, JOSEPH
FRU, MAXELE                           YOUNG, FRANCIS
CHE, CLEMENT                         MANI, CHARLES
BAH, ESTER                                AYAH, FRANCIS
CHE, MARTIN                            NYNDEM, BATAHOS
MAKAI, PRUDENTIEL               NDIKUM, AK
YOUNG, JOSEPH                        MUKOM, ERIC
NAH, AUGUSTINE                      ACHU, ELIAS
JAM, GRACE                                AYE, JUDE
BANGAH, JOE                              GWAIN, MATHIAU
WYE, JEREMAIH                          TAMGU, ABDULLAH
LOPTE, SIMONE
 

WRITTEN IN DOUALA ON 7 NOVEMBER 2001

PHILOMENE BOMIA

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