t level since November 1994 when they averaged 153.33 US cents/lb.
Coffee and the Ngobe-Bugle Culture of Panama
Since its early days, our coffee industry in Panama has depended of the skilled hands of the Ngöbe-Buglé, native Panamanians who for decades have migrated from their homeland in the mountains of their “Comarca” to work in the coffee farms located around the Baru Volcano.
The Ngöbe and Buglé are actually two separate linguistic/indigenous groups whose languages are mutually unintelligible. The larger group, the Ngöbe, speak Ngäbere, while the smaller group, the Buglé, speak Buglére; both are members of the Chibchan language family. Collectively, these two groups make up the largest indigenous population in Panama. The Ngöbe-Buglé live in their Comarca (Reservation) located to the Northeast of Chiriqui in a mountainous area that is still part of the Talamanca mountain range.
The labor from the natives Ngöbe-Buglé in the complete process is invaluable: From them we have learned the technique of harvesting that allows the correct selection of the mature cherry. With the selection of the cherry, the Ngöbe-Buglé initiates the manual quality control that makes the coffee uniquely special.
In our farms we respect their culture and ways of life, trying to improve their condition. Some members of SCAP have comprehensive social programs on the areas of health, nutrition, education and proper child care aimed at to offering a better quality of life for them and their families.
Couresy: http://scap-panama.com/the-coffee-culture/coffee-and-the-gnobe-bugle-culture
