Brazil
Cerrado Mineiro DO
Jorge Fernando Naimeg
Londrina
Yellow Catuai
Natural
July-September
Citrus, Milk Chocolate
1150 meters
Cerrado Mineiro Designation of Origin, MCO Initiative, Certifica Minas
60kg with liner
SOLD OUT
The story of the Naimeg family farms goes back to August 17, 1938, when Gerson Naimeg was born in Conselheiro Pena, Minas Gerais to a father recently immigrated from Germany and a Brazilian mother. As a young man he moved his family to the northern state of Paraná in 1957, where he married Hercília Mafra from Botelhos in Southern Minas Gerais. Together they had six children: Joseph Ali, Carlos, Nilza, Gerson, Mauro, and Jorge Fernando.
In 1962, after working for a coffee trader at the Northern Company of Paraná, Gerson acquired his first piece of land and was able to show his passion for coffee by planting a farm in the northern region of Paraná. The family-owned Naimeg group was founded in 1965 as an organization dedicated to the highest qualities of coffee.
In 1981, after the crop had been devastated by three major frosts, Gerson decided to go to the mountains of Minas Gerais and acquired Fazenda Pântano in the city of Coromandel. The family now has three additional farms: Bela Vista, Ouro Verde, and Londrina, administered by Jorge Fernando Naimeg. The six siblings remain united, having preserved their family’s history and legacy for more than fifty years.
Fazenda Londrina, also called Lages, is 394 hectares, with 190 hectares planted with coffee. The trees flower in September and October for the harvest the following July to September. The average temperature is 21° C. The farm grows several varieties of Catuai in addition to Topazio, Mundo Novo, Acacia Cerrado, Rubi, Paraiso, and Catucai.
The Naimeg Group’s farms are part of the Minas Coffee Origins initiative. Minas Coffee Origins are controlled origins that take specialty coffee to the next level. Controlled Origins are the product of the “terroir” produced in a demarcated area by the soil, climate, and topography characteristics combined with the production traditions of coffee growers.
These factors together generate coffee with inherent characteristics of the territory. To guarantee its authenticity, it must be produced following the official production process and controlled by an officially recognized association committed to help growers and the development of the coffee region.
Londrina participates in the Cerrado Mineiro Designation of Origin program.
The Cerrado Mineiro region, located in northwest of Minas Gerais State is a world-recognized, high-quality coffee producing origin and became the first Protected Geographical Indication in Brazil in 2005, with full Designation of Origin in 2013. A strong characteristic of this region is its well-defined seasons—a hot, wet summer is followed by a pleasantly dry winter. The dry climate during harvest eliminates potential problems with humidity during the drying process.
Minas Gerais is Brazil’s principal agricultural state, and the Cerrado is home to many of the country’s celebrated coffee estates, with expertise in planting, harvesting, drying, and sorting. We love Cerrado coffees for their big body, rich chocolate notes, and velvety texture when pulled as espresso.
Today, the area’s 4,500 farmers produce a combined average of 6 million bags per harvest, with an average of 35 bags per hectare. To reach these production levels, producers had to first adapt to the region’s conditions. Coffee farmers first arrived in Cerrado in the 1970’s, after being pushed out of the state of Parana by frost and out of the state of Sao Paulo by nematodes. They found the soil in Cerrado to be very acidic, which they rectified with the application of calcium to create the healthy soils they enjoy today.
Cerrado coffee farms are cultivated in areas with elevations varying between 800 and 1,300 meters above sea level and are known for consistently producing high quality coffees with a repeatable profile. Independent of farm size, the spirit of professionalism is present throughout Cerrado’s coffee producers. Entrepreneurialism is part of farmers’ DNA, and many producers are second or third generation growers who also hold degrees in agronomic engineering, business management, and administration. While each family narrative is different, Cerrado is characterized by an enterprising attitude.
The Cerrado Mineiro Designation of Origin recognizes demarcated territory that produces a product with unique characteristics not found anywhere else. In Brazil, the recognition of the Designation of Origin is made by the INPI – National Institute of Industrial Property. The Cerrado Mineiro Region Designation of Origin includes 55 municipalities that produce coffee with a special cup profile. Coffees from Cerrado Mineiro have a unique identity and quality resulting from the combination of climate, soil, terrain, altitude and know-how of people, from producers to agronomists to warehouse engineers.
In Cerrado Mineiro, there are 234,000 hectares in production, more than 102,000 of which are certified by the Designation of Origin program, and 68,000 hectares use irrigation systems. Coffee from Cerrado Mineiro represents 14.4% of Brazilian production and more than 25% of Minas Gerais production. There are 4,500 coffee growers in Cerrado, and the program represents more than 1,000 producers and farms, and between 60,00-100,000 bags depending on the harvest.
To bear the Cerrado Mineiro designation of Origin seal, coffees meet the following criteria: produced within the defined Cerrado Mineiro area, grown above 800 meters above sea level, variety of Arabica coffee, producer member of one of the 9 cooperatives or 6 associations that make up the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation, compliant with all Brazilian agricultural best practices laws, cup above 80 points SCA, and be stored in an accredited warehouse. Every year, the third party Totum Institute audits the Cerrado Mineiro Designation of Origin, guaranteeing all procedures adopted in its regulations of use and operation.
