NOTES: WILD BERRIES, CHOCOLATE, SMOOTH CARAMEL WITH A LOVELY FINISH OF BLACKCURRANTS.

The town of La Yerba is a small community on the northern side of the San Juan Volcano. The community was originally founded under the name of El Astal, but in 1969 the town was relocated to border a highway as a newly formed Ejido and was named La Yerba. To this day the community remains integrated by 35 Ejidatarios* with a total of 786 inhabitants; 383 women and 403 men, according to the census of INEGI, 2013.

La Yerba is home to the ASTAL society, with whom San Cristobal has been working for the past 8 years. The economy of La Yerba is tied to its two most important crops, coffee and avocados. With one harvest immediately following the other, there are only a few months a year where farmers have guaranteed income. By working with San Cristobal and CAFESUMEX, farmers receive a price adjustment based on the quality and sale price 4 to 6 months after the harvest of their coffee, in addition to the price they receive for their coffee in cherry form.

*An Ejido is a community comprised of communal lands designated for agricultural production. Each Ejidatario (joint land owner/farmer) has individual rights to a parcel of land or parcela, these rights can continue indefinitely and be passed on to their children, as long as the land is under consistent cultivation. With its ideology dating back to the calpulli system of the Aztecs, the Ejido system was established by the Mexican government in 1934. The establishment of an Ejido would begin with landless farmers who typically leased lands from wealthy landlords petitioning the government. The government would then consult with the landlord, and redistribute the land if the Ejido was approved. The Ejido would then be established, designating the original petitioners as Ejidatarios with individual rights to the land. Each Ejido is registered with Mexico’s National Agrarian Registry (Registro Agrario Nacional). The Ejido system was eliminated in 1991, citing low productivity of communally owned land. While existing Ejidos were not disbanded and remain to this day, it is largely viewed that their elimination was a direct result of the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) of 1994.