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Detail of earthworms found during a soil analysis demonstration at Elmer Flores coffee farm in Choloma, Jesús de Otoro, Opalaca, Honduras. “We count earthworms in a cubic meter when we do a soil analysis, if there are many earthworms it means our soil is healthy ”, he says. Elmer is a coffee producer and Blue Harvest promotor and member of COMICOVEL Cooperative which was created with the help ofthe project and that is already exporting Honduran coffee to the international markets.Introduced in 2014 with funding from Keurig Dr. Pepper and the International Development Bank, the Blue Harvest initiative worked to protect watersheds that supply drinking water in rural and urban communities by improving water resource management and, at the same time, increase farmer incomes. Coffee production was a critical component in the water system: coffee is an important source of livelihood for small-holder farmers, but also a leading source of surface water contamination in coffee-growing watersheds. To protect water quality and quantity in watersheds in any sustainable way, CRS engaged coffee farmers and evaluated the entire coffee production system. The Blue Harvest team worked with a variety of decision makers public and private, to bring a lasting multi-systems change for watershed restoration and protection. The project helped 2,395 farmers and restored 4,280 hectares of land, including 14 watersheds in Honduras. To protect watersheds Blue Harvest worked to: Influence local policy, ordinances and regulations governing watershed protection. Promote water-smart farming practices and create incentives for water smart practices. Promote water-smart coffee milling practices and technologies. Promote practices to protect and improve the soil. Improve coffee quality so farmers may access higher value coffee markets.

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Created	September 30, 2021 by CRS
Uploaded	May 15, 2024 by Paola Moreno
Source	https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1K9_LdedIIbGuztfnuWvbOIygxAiHuzby
License	CC-BY-SA-4.0