Honoring Our Roots | De La Gente’s Role in Connecting Farming Communities to Markets and Strengthening Agricultural Value Chains in Guatemala
By Aliisa Oake
Our roots began in small family owned coffee farms in the highlands of Guatemala. These smallholder farmers once held dreams of supporting community development initiatives, improving their family’s livelihoods, and upholding a stronger position in the agricultural value chain.
Farming communities around the world hold generations of knowledge, tradition, and hard work — playing an essential role in supplying local and global markets, but they tend to feel restricted from receiving a fair return and full value for their hard work. At the same time, agricultural markets are constantly influenced by fluctuating prices, quality expectations, and geopolitical factors. For farmers navigating these industry dynamics individually, finding their place within the larger industry while securing a fair return is a significant challenge.
De La Gente exists to change that.
At De La Gente, we work to address these barriers by strengthening connections between small-scale farmers in Guatemala with buyers in the U.S. In partnership with various smallholder farmers in different agricultural communities in Guatemala, we strive to create sustainable economic opportunities for smallholder farmers and their communities, including equitable access to markets. In this blog, we’ll go into more details on each area of our work as a non-profit organization, and how we improve market access, implement community development initiatives, and encourage smallholder income diversification. We’ll also demonstrate the importance of building long-term partnerships in the agricultural value chain.
Elisandro, a coffee producer and member of the Coffee Growers of San Miguel Escobar
Who is De La Gente? How is De La Gente Creating Impact in Guatemala?
De La Gente’s story started in 2014 with a focus on coffee. In coffee producing countries like Guatemala, coffee has a unique way of contributing to the country’s national identity and becomes a fundamental part of daily life — especially for the communities involved in coffee cultivation. Despite its cultural and economic significance in Guatemala, the global coffee industry is often disconnected, making consumers unaware of what’s involved in the bean-to-cup process. This contributes to many coffee-growing families facing limited opportunities for economic growth and lack of access to essential infrastructure.
In farming communities, smallholder farmers face constant challenges regarding pricing, limited access to markets, and barriers to education — overall limiting their growth. Due to many hardships and limitations present in rural regions of Guatemala, lack of opportunities force farmers to migrate to other departments within the country or even to other countries — leaving generations of knowledge behind in search of an improved life.
De La Gente’s founders acknowledged the shortcomings faced by smallholder farmers in Guatemala’s coffee industry – seeking to open the doors to more opportunities and uplift their communities. De La Gente, translating directly to “of the people”, which describes who we are, who we serve, and who benefits from our work. We are a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the U.S. that works with smallholder farmers in Guatemala to create fair economic opportunities and more sustainable livelihoods in agriculturally-focused regions while confronting issues and injustices within the agricultural value chain and related challenges that smallholder farmers face.
De La Gente was founded to help overcome challenges faced by smallholder farmers by creating direct market opportunities in the agricultural value chain, supporting community development, and expanding access to essential resources – empowering producers to strengthen their livelihoods while building a more equitable supply chain. Our organization has evolved significantly over the years, but our roots remain in the desire for change. We envision an agricultural industry that is equitable and inclusive, enabling small-scale farmers to earn a dignified income and live prosperous lives, fostering authentic relationships between producers and buyers, and prioritizing the economic, social, and environmental well-being of all involved.
Our Areas of Work — De La Gente’s Operations in Guatemala
De La Gente primarily focuses on empowering smallholder farmers and their communities in Guatemala. Our work started with coffee farming cooperatives. Nowadays, we work with nine coffee cooperatives total, across four coffee-producing regions in Guatemala. We represent over 140 small-scale coffee producers and have been recognized for the high quality of our coffee, our transparent relationships with the cooperatives we partner with, and the immersive travel opportunities we provide within those communities. In 2026, we strive to continue expanding our impact as we embark on a new horizon and partnering with more farming communities in Guatemala.
Smallholder Development — Strengthening Farmers and the Organizations They Lead
In our Smallholder Development area, De La Gente works to strengthen farmers and the organizations they lead. We work alongside smallholder farmers and their cooperatives to strengthen skills, resources, and systems they need to thrive. In this area of work, training programs, technical assistance, machinery, and support for infrastructure improvements assist farmer-led organizations to become stronger and deliver economic benefits for their members. Through our partnerships with cooperatives, we also offer a 0% interest micro-loan program that encourages cooperative members to invest in individual or collective development projects — further strengthening their long-term growth and resilience. Community development projects are focused on individual and collective needs depending on the farming community and their goals.
Members of the Women Caficultora Network — our partner cooperative that was implemented to create a brighter future for women in coffee
Inclusive Value Chains — Connecting Smallholder Farmers to Better Markets and Stronger Relationships
By connecting smallholder farmers to better markets and building stronger relationships in the agricultural value chain, we build more inclusive supply chains that connect smallholder farmers directly with buyers and consumers in national and international markets. In the area of work focusing on Inclusive Value Chains, our focal point of creating stronger relationships and improving access to markets helps farmers access better and more stable economic opportunities while enabling buyers and consumers to build more meaningful connections with the people who produce their products. When smallholder farmers are supported in maintaining a position in the agricultural value chain and can commercialize their products according to ethical business standards, they are able to capture a greater value for their products and increase their bargaining power. In turn, this supports the foundation for building sustainable opportunities in their farming communities and for their families.
Smallholder Income Diversification — Creating Opportunities for Farmers and Their Families to Build More Resilient Livelihoods
Our final area of impact brings us to Smallholder Income Diversification, focusing on creating opportunities for farmers and their families to build more resilient livelihoods. De La Gente creates opportunities for smallholder farmers and their families to diversify their sources of income. Through community tourism in Guatemala and other complementary economic activities, we help farming households develop additional income streams and build more resilient livelihoods. By welcoming visitors to Guatemala’s farming communities, we have implemented programs that also serve as a tangible way of raising awareness about small-scale farming and the actors involved in the supply chain from producer to consumer.
A group of participants gathered in coffee field during their coffee farm tour in Antigua Guatemala
Building Stronger Agricultural Value Chains Through Long-Term Partnerships
Strengthening agricultural value chains relies on building strong relationships within them. Traditional supply chains often involve multiple intermediaries, which in turn creates a disconnect between producers and buyers – limiting opportunities for the foundation of relationships, direct communication, and collaboration.
De La Gente’s agricultural value chain approach involves our relationship-based trade system, which connects small-scale farmers and their cooperatives directly with international buyers. This system creates greater market access and opportunities to build long-term partnerships, which is essential when creating supply chain resilience, buyer consistency, and shared risk and reward. Relationship-based trade also enhances the transparency of business functions, ethical sourcing practices, and shared understanding of challenges. The value creation of agricultural products is built upon and established between producers and buyers as farmers obtain financial predictability to fund any necessary initiatives, practice with new farming innovations, or other internal developments.
How You Can Be A Part of Our Story
Each cup of De La Gente coffee symbolizes a brighter future for small-scale coffee producers — bringing us back to our roots and De La Gente’s mission
As we’re honoring our roots and reflecting on the success we’ve made towards creating a brighter future for smallholder farmers and their farming communities in Guatemala, we’re reminded that this work has always been collective. Our impact is only possible through community – from the producers involved in growing each bean to the supporters who believe in creating a more equitable future in agriculture and our work at De La Gente. Over the years, our supporters have stood beside us, growing with us and encouraging us to continue our mission and spreading awareness about the realities of farming families. Honoring our roots means recognizing that meaningful change is never achieved alone – it’s built through partnerships, shared values, and a commitment to uplifting the people at the heart of Guatemala’s agricultural industry – which is something that we’ve been incredibly grateful for since our organization’s founding.
Support De La Gente as we continue creating a positive impact in the lives of smallholder farmers in Guatemala. Together, we can continue building value chains in agriculture that are rooted in dignity, connection, and shared impact. Every purchase, every contribution, and every connection helps us carry our founding values forward – strengthening our roots as we continue creating a brighter future for smallholder farmers in Guatemala.
Be a part of our story.
