Producer Toolkit: Farming, Pt 3 - Starved soils and vanishing labour

This episode explores what plants really need from the soil beneath them, and the labour shortage forcing farms to rethink how the work gets done. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #79: Farm First: Lalo Perez on Long-Term Coffee Health James: The Science of Coffee: The Magic of Soils The Science of Coffee: Plant Genetics People mentioned in the episode: Fernando Castillo Guatemala Paulino Quintero, Colombia Orlando Osoria, Colombia Julia Ortega, Mexico Sergio de la Vequia, Mexico Hugo Lopez, Innovakit Manuel Mata, Colombia Sam Knowlton, Soil Symbiotics Lalo Perez, Biofilia Resources: Anacafe technical management Coffee Cascara Compost Guidelines (English) Compostaje de la pulpa/cáscara de café (Espanol) Netafim Drip Irrigation manual Innovakit: abonador (fertiliser applicator) Innovakit: aroplateo (tree guard for weed whacking) Innovakit: selector de arvenses (low-drift sprayer) Innovakit: canguaro (sleeves) World Coffee Research variety catalogue Recommended varieties: Centroamericano, H1, H16, Mundo Maya Coffee&Climate Toolbox Access Agriculture World Coffee Research Resources Barista Hustle’s Coffee Farm Management series The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories