Founding Date: October 13, 1960
Associate Founders: 96
Actual Associates: 750
Initial Production: 3,900
Average Production: 65,000

COOPEDOTA’s advertising and sales department is primarily focused on promoting our roasted coffee, but we also offer a variety of coffee samplings (both cold and hot). For more than a year, the department has taught coffee preparation courses for restaurants, businesses and the general public, which has helped us to achieve our goals.

Recent Achievements

• Offered the best wholesale prices of coffee for producers, during the last three years.
• Awarded the WHITE FLAG prize
• Won first place in the coffee tasting contests at the Association of Specialty Coffee in Miami.
• Set a fixed, sustainable price of coffee in order to guarantee that the coffee farmers a sustainable income.
• Granted free technical assistance and financial support for our producers all year long
• Awarded Medal of Honor for our Coffee.

Social Projections

Help the coffee producers in case of sickness (incapacity)
Provide economic support for the retirement home in Santa Maria de Dota. (on average 2 million colones annually).

Sport Projections

Cafe Quetzal Cup: A sport championship held at the level of all of the Zona de Los Santos, that involves children, youth and adults, of both sexes. COOPEDOTA provides economic support to promote sports in the region while at the same time advertising coffee on a regional level.

Administrative and Constituent Structure

The Coffee Growers of Dota, R.L., a cooperative association, is governed by statutes dictated by the Administrative council, a body that represents the 700 associates of the cooperative. 

According to the cooperative’s statutes, the goals of the cooperative must be developed to promote coffee production in the zone, in any of the following areas: the cultivation of coffee, the production of coffee, and/or the industrialization and commercialization of coffee (for exportation or for domestic consumption). Year after year, Coopedota aims to provide their associates with the additional incentive of improved clearance sale prices.

Below is a list of Coopedota’s future objectives:

• Increase international and domestic sales and consumption of Coopedota’s coffee
• Produce, manufacture and acquire any necessary primary materials for our producers
• Collaborate with other agricultural institutions or industries that could improve cultivation techniques
• Tend to the needs of our associates by promoting any activities that reduce cost and offer assistance for our affiliates
• Secure the social and economic improvement of the zone through the creation of social services, the improvement of technical support to our associates, and the establishment of relationships with other cooperative organizations.

Located in the city of Santa Maria, First District, providence of San Jose, the cooperative of Coopedota R.L, is organized internally in the following manner:
 
The Assembly of General Associates; the cooperative’s supreme authority. All agreements decided by the Assembly of General Associates are irreversible.

The Advising Administration; its members (associates elected by the Assembly of General Associates) only have power to make decisions as a group, not as individuals, their representation is delegated for a period of two years, some of their responsibilities include the direction and superior administration of the Cooperative and dictate its general politics, roles, norms and procedures that regulate the Cooperative at an administrative level. 

Surveillance Committee; formed by three associates of the cooperative, elected to a two year term by the Assembly of General Associates, the surveillance committee oversees administration and fiscal matters of the cooperative and reports its findings to the General Assembly.

Education and Welfare Committee, formed by three associates elected to a term of three years by the General Assembly, the Education and Welfare Committee assures that the training and education facilities in the cooperative are in good condition, they also develop social welfare projects that benefit the associates of the Cooperative and their families.

General Manager, legally represents the Cooperative and is the person in charge of carrying out the agreements made by the Advising Administration, also administers the business of the Cooperative, coordinating the work flow between key departments and sectors, so as to ensure the following:

• The profitability of the sales generated by the cooperative
• The position that coffee occupies in the international and domestic markets
• The achievement of all productivity goals established by the production plant
• The fulfillment of established short, medium and long term goals

Accounting Department: Responsible for all of the financial records—manages all accounting and transactions that the cooperative requires.

Supply Department: Distributes products though sales to the cooperative’s associates as well as to the general public, establishes relationships and connections with specialized businesses and suppliers of necessary special equipment or primary material. 

Production Department: Responsible for the production plant processes.

Roasting Department: The Roaster, that processes already roasted coffee, was started in 1997.  Coopedota, renown as one of the best coffees in the world, processes, sells and distributes four different brands of coffee on an international and domestic level, these brands are:

• CAFÉ QUETZAL
• CAFÉ DOTA-TARRAZÙ
• CAFÉ DOTA

And as a private brand for sale in Canada:

HERMOSA DOTA-TARRAZÙ

All brands are sold via Mail Order, E-commerce and direct sales.

EXPORTING COFFEE

The type of coffee produced is BHS and the exporting brand is SM DOTA-TARRAZU. The altitude at which the coffee is produced is 1,500 to 1,800 meters above sea level. In the year 2000 we produced 48,000 fanegas. The increase in production necessitates the modernization of production. To meet the needs of our coffee producers, Coopedota has implemented certain technologies that bring its coffee production up to date.