Cenfrocafé

What Cenfrocafé does

Cenfrocafé (Central de Asociaciones de Productores Cafetaleros) is a Peruvian coffee cooperative founded on October 26, 1999, in the hamlet of Palla Peña, Tabaconas District, San Ignacio. It aggregates 2,800+ smallholder farming families organized into 124 base associations and 11 networks across the provinces of Jaén, San Ignacio, and Bagua. The cooperative's purpose is to consolidate production from dispersed smallholder farms, improve farmer incomes through collective bargaining, and access premium specialty coffee markets that individual farmers could not reach independently.

The cooperative operates two primary revenue streams: (1) export of green coffee beans (café oro exportable) directly to international specialty buyers, utilizing independent export capability achieved in 2007; and (2) branded retail coffee product sales through an online catalog and contact-based ordering, with six branded SKUs — Café Apu Gourmet, Café Apu Classic, Café Apu Espresso, Café Chasqui, Café Jaen Coffee, and Café Amigo de la Tierra. The product portfolio leverages traditional varieties (Caturra, Bourbon, Typica, Marcellesa, Parainema) grown at 1,200-1,700+ meters above sea level, with differentiated processing including cold fermentation below 15°C and shade drying over 25 days. All products carry Organic certification, and Fair Trade certification (Comercio Justo) was achieved in 2007 across the relevant product lines.

Cenfrocafé's customer base is split between international specialty coffee buyers (enterprise roasters seeking traceable, certified Peruvian coffee) and domestic Peruvian consumers purchasing through the cooperative's catalog. Five warehouses across San Ignacio and Bagua support post-harvest storage and processing. The cooperative partners with CEPICAFE as a strategic alliance and is supported by RPE (referenced in the website footer). Pricing is not publicly disclosed; sales are routed through a website contact form and direct catalog inquiry. No external parent company, institutional investors, or PE/VC backing is disclosed, consistent with the cooperative ownership model.

Name

Cenfrocafé

Legal name

CENFROCAFÉ

Website

https://cenfrocafe.com.pe

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Cenfrocafé is a Peruvian coffee cooperative founded in 1999 that aggregates 2,800+ smallholder farming families across Jaén, San Ignacio, and Bagua to export specialty green coffee beans and six branded retail products (Apu, Chasqui, Jaen Coffee, Amigo de la Tierra) with Organic and Fair Trade certifications to international and domestic specialty markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee

NAICS

Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (311920), Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (31192)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee & Cacao Plantations (Coffee, Cocoa) (AFAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Coffee, Tea & Cocoa Trading/Wholesale (AFAIAKAD), Coffee (Roasted, Ground, Whole Bean) (CRADAHAG)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee
• Green coffee export
• Fair trade coffee
• Organic coffee
• Coffee cooperative

Headquarters

HQ city

Jaén

HQ country

Peru

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Green Coffee Export: Export of green coffee beans (café oro exportable) to international markets. In 2006, Cenfrocafé exported 60 containers. From 2007 onward, began independent export operations with Fair Trade certification.
2. Branded Coffee Product Sales: Sale of branded specialty coffee products including Café Apu Gourmet, Café Apu Classic, Café Apu Espresso, Café Chasqui, Café Jaen Coffee, and Café Amigo de la Tierra through their catalog to local and international customers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cenfrocafé is a coffee cooperative that produces, processes, and markets specialty coffee from over 2,800 smallholder farming families in northern Peru. The cooperative sells both bulk green coffee (café oro exportable) to international enterprise buyers and a portfolio of six branded specialty retail products (Café Apu Gourmet, Café Apu Classic, Café Apu Espresso, Café Chasqui, Café Jaen Coffee, Café Amigo de la Tierra) through direct catalog sales to local and international customers. All products carry Organic and Fair Trade certifications and are sourced from traditional and introduced coffee varieties grown at high altitudes in Jaén, San Ignacio, and Bagua.

Product overview

Cenfrocafé is a coffee cooperative offering a portfolio of specialty coffee products across multiple tiers. The product line includes Café Apu Gourmet (premium), Café Apu Classic (mid-tier), Café Apu Espresso (espresso blend), Café Chasqui (high-altitude specialty), Café Jaen Coffee (regional origin), and Café Amigo de la Tierra (sustainable certification-focused). All products feature organic and Fair Trade certifications, are sourced from family farms in Jaén, San Ignacio, and Amazonas provinces, and are processed using traditional washing, fermentation, and shade-drying methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Café Apu Gourmet: Premium coffee made with organic and Fair Trade certified varieties Caturra, Typica and Bourbon from special microclimates of Jaén and San Ignacio, with fermentation at temperatures below 15°C and slow drying over 25 days.
• Café Apu Classic
• Café Apu Espresso
• Café Chasqui
• Café Jaen Coffee
• Café Amigo de la Tierra

Products and services

• Café Apu Gourmet Premium specialty coffee made from Caturra, Typica, and Bourbon varieties sourced from microclimates in Jaén and San Ignacio. Cold fermentation at temperatures below 15°C with slow shade drying over 25+ days. Organic and Fair Trade certified.
• Café Apu Classic Specialty coffee made from Caturra, Bourbon, and Typica varieties grown above 1,700 masl in Jaén and San Ignacio. Organic and Fair Trade certified.
• Café Apu Espresso Espresso blend from Caturra, Bourbon, and Marcellesa varieties sourced from microclimates in Jaén and San Ignacio. Features prolonged cold fermentation with limited oxygen. Organic and Fair Trade certified.
• Café Chasqui Specialty coffee from farms at 1,400+ masl featuring traditional varieties and introduced varieties Marcellesa and Parainema from Jaén, San Ignacio, and Amazonas. Cupping score of 82–83 points. Organic and Fair Trade certified.
• Café Jaen Coffee Traditional variety coffee grown above 1,200 masl in Jaén, San Ignacio, and Amazonas provinces with chocolate flavor profiles. Organic and Fair Trade certified.
• Café Amigo de la Tierra

Quantifiable outcome

• Cupping scores of 80-86 points across product lines
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CEPICAFEcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2001CEPICAFE is a key partner organization that initiated relationship with Cenfrocafé in 2001. In 2006, Cenfrocafé exported 60 containers through CEPICAFE before achieving independent export capabilities in 2007.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU): Ethiopian union of primary coffee cooperatives exporting traceable, washed Yirgacheffe specialty coffee. Same farmer-owned cooperative export structure and organic/Fair Trade positioning as Cenfrocafé, though in a different origin.
• SOPPEXCCA: Nicaraguan coffee cooperative exporting certified specialty and Fair Trade coffee from smallholder farmers. Same smallholder cooperative export model, similar product mix (washed Arabica, organic), and shared international specialty buyers.
• Coop Coffees: North American importing cooperative sourcing 100% specialty grade, Fair Trade and organic green coffee from producer cooperatives globally. Closely analogous operating model (cooperative-to-cooperative supply chain) and a likely existing buyer partner for Cenfrocafé.
• Cooperativa La Meseta: Colombian specialty coffee cooperative exporting high-altitude, traceable coffees to international markets. Comparable farmer-owned cooperative structure and specialty grade positioning to Cenfrocafé, with overlap in roaster customers and certification programs.
• Cooperativa Agraria Sol y Café: Peruvian specialty coffee cooperative exporting Organic and Fair Trade green coffee to international roasters. Highly comparable in size, geography, certification profile, and cooperative structure to Cenfrocafé, making it the closest head-to-head peer.
• Cooperativa Agraria Cafetalera Pangoa: Peruvian coffee cooperative in Junín producing Organic, Fair Trade and rainforest-allied coffees for export. Same farmer-owned cooperative model, similar scale of producer membership, and overlapping international buyer base with Cenfrocafé.
• Asociación Nacional de Productores Agroecológicos Indígena (ANEI): Colombian smallholder coffee cooperative producing Organic and Fair Trade coffees with a strong origin and community narrative. Same producer-cooperative export model and comparable go-to-market focus on traceable, certified specialty coffee.

Broad incumbents

• Federación Nacional de Cafeteros (FNC): Colombia's national coffee federation, the world's largest coffee producer organization. Far larger scale and broader portfolio than Cenfrocafé, but operates a similar farmer-cooperative export model with strong international brand (Juan Valdez), setting the competitive ceiling.
• Sucafina Specialty: Global green coffee trader and importer with a specialty division that sources from cooperatives like Cenfrocafé. Overlapping buyer side of the specialty green coffee value chain; not a cooperative but a comparable channel partner and competitive counterparty.
• Volcafe Specialty Coffee: Global coffee trading and processing platform with a dedicated specialty origin sourcing arm operating across Latin America. Comparable buyer and channel peer for Cenfrocafé's green and roasted specialty output.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Cenfrocafe
• Instagraminstagram.com/cenfrocafe
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cenfrocafe

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cenfrocafé