Tostana Cafe

Juan and Rebecca Camacho

Credits

Photography - HIRO
Interview - MINA

"We are a family proud business. We are proud of what we do. We are proud of where we get our coffee from."

Coffee is such an everyday drink that many people overlook the immense amount of work behind each cup. That is exactly what Tostana café aims to showcase as they serve specialty coffee grown by their family in Gigante, Huila, Colombia, on their farm, `Finca La Florida`.

Behind every cup of coffee is the untold story of hardworking farmers who often struggle to receive fair compensation for their efforts. Tostana is changing that narrative by bringing their family's coffee directly to consumers through direct trade, ensuring both quality and fairness while allowing people to savour the rich flavours of their single-origin coffee.

However, building a small business has not been an easy road for Juan and Rebecca. To keep their dream alive, they have continued working full-time jobs while running the café. A turning point came in June 2024, when Local Harvest Market in Chilliwack offered them a permanent spot for their coffee stand, allowing them to establish deeper connections within the community.

As Tostana café continues to grow, so does the community around it. More and more people are gathering, supporting, and becoming part of their journey. Beyond coffee, they ensure something for everyone, offering seasonal drinks, teas, and frappés - and soon, an Easter Mini Egg Latte!

So, the next time you enjoy a cup of coffee, take a moment to appreciate the journey behind it - the dedication of farmers, the meticulous process, and the passion that brings it to your cup. That small act of recognition keeps Tostana pushing forward, serving not just coffee, but a story in every cup.

VOICE (V): Tell us about yourself and how you got into the coffee business.

Juan(J): I come from a coffee farming family in Colombia with over 100 years of history in the industry. Although I was raised in the city, visiting our family farm as a kid was always a fun experience. When I was thirteen, my father decided to immigrate to Canada for a better future. It wasn't until recently, when my wife and I spent five months in Colombia in 2021, that we truly understood how much work goes into growing coffee. A coffee plant takes a few years to reach full production. It peaks in its third and fourth years, but in the fifth year, it is cut down and restarted. This cycle continues for about 20 years. Growing up, I had no idea about these processes, it was intriguing!

We fell in love with what my family has been doing for generations and how years of hard work ultimately result in a single cup of coffee. Before we started our business, my family had never sold their coffee internationally. So, we decided to bring some of it back to Canada and start a business of our own.

V: How did it go?

J: As soon as we returned from Colombia, we bought a small trailer. That was the first step toward becoming a small business owner. However, I quickly realized how much time, effort, and capital it takes to run a business. I also learned that as much as I wanted to devote my time to this new business, leaving my full-time construction job was not an option, as I needed to support my growing family.

Rebecca(R): We converted the trailer into a mobile coffee stand and started selling coffee at markets and events in Vancouver. Since we were always moving around, it was sometimes hard for customers to find us. People loved our coffee but didn't always know where to get it. That's when we realized we needed a permanent location.

V: How did you connect with Local Harvest, and how has it changed your business?

J: It felt like a little miracle. We had contacted Dan, the owner of Local Harvest, a year earlier but never heard back. At that point, we were on the verge of giving up the coffee business, we couldn't keep up financially. Then, out of the blue, we received an email from Dan, literally right when we were about to call it quits. We met with his wife, Helen, and things started moving quickly. They welcomed us and agreed to have Tostana café on their farm - it was a perfect fit. Their prime location gives us great exposure and has helped us build a solid customer base. Dan and Helen are truly special people, deeply knowledgeable in their field, and incredibly welcoming and supportive. Now, we're excited to celebrate our first anniversary with them this coming May.

R: It's nice for customers to know where to find us. We've noticed a lot of regulars and familiar faces now, and we feel so much warmth and support from the Chilliwack community. The connections around us have grown so much and we've built relationships and made new friends along the way. There are so many farms and local businesses here, and we love the opportunity to speak directly with the business owners when we buy local products.

V: How is your coffee different from other coffee?

R: Our coffee follows a direct-trade model, whereas most coffee comes from fair trade or third-party exporters/importers. In those cases, coffee farmers don't get to negotiate the price of their beans. With direct trade, farmers can set prices and earn significantly more for their work. Our mission is to promote direct-trade coffee and showcase what Juan's family has been doing for generations.

J: We are truly a direct-trade coffee business. There's no middleman and mix-up of our beans, which means you get to experience the pure flavour of coffee grown in our terroir. Our coffee is hand-picked only when the cherries are fully ripe, unlike conventional coffee harvesting, where all beans, whether ready or not, are collected at once. After harvesting, the beans go through a careful selection process. The best ones are sent to a de-pulper and then into fermentation tanks. Fermentation time varies depending on the bean variety. Once fermented and dried, our family takes them to the co-op for the de-husking process, after which they become green beans, ready for export.

We handle all processing in-house, except for de-husking, ensuring that our coffee is never mixed with other products. This guarantees high quality, transparency, and a direct connection to where the beans come from. In contrast, when coffee is processed through a co-op, it gets mixed with beans from many different farms and is sold under the co-op's label, with prices set by them, not the farmers.

As a small business, we can only bring 60kg of coffee at a time by air, which is very costly and time-consuming. Our coffee arrives in Canada within five days of being packaged, ensuring freshness and quality.

V: What is your vision for the future?

R: We're currently working on buying our coffee roaster. Right now, we are partnering with a local roaster in Chilliwack. While we love collaboration, we feel that this is the right next step for us. We've both completed roasting courses, so we're excited to start doing on-site roasting soon. And of course, we have even bigger dreams for the future!

V: What does coffee mean to you?

J: If you had asked me this question a year ago, I probably would have said, I'm done with coffee. But now, coffee has become fulfilling, and I feel truly grateful for where I am today.