Blood, sweat, and coffee
The backbreaking work of the coffee makers
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
(Janet Jarman)Coffee labor is often performed by migrants who travel from poorer parts of the continent to find work on the plantations. The harvesting period lasts from roughly November to February, so workers either leave their homes for many months at a time or take their entire families with them. They eat and sleep on the estates, oftentimes in squalid conditions. "In the migrant bunk houses, which are common throughout the coffee lands, workers have very little privacy and often lack access to toilets, potable water, or a place to keep their belongings safe," Jarman says. "Some farms offer better food than others. One group felt lucky to be on a farm that offered more than just rice."One plantation can employ over 600 workers at the height of harvest, though sizes vary. Workers' ages, too, span a very wide range: Jarman met men in their 60s doing the taxing work of collecting the fruit and hauling it back. It also wasn't uncommon to see parents and children doing the same work together.
(Janet Jarman)
(Janet Jarman)
(Janet Jarman)Despite all the struggle these workers face, Jarman says she encountered a lot of people who took great pride in their craft, particularly those who ran and worked smaller farms. A lot of these people "consider growing coffee to be a true art.""Many producers and workers want their stories to be told," she says. "I vividly remember one Nicaraguan producer … [He] once told me: 'I want people to drink our coffee while imagining the family that gave them these beans through their labor.'"
(Janet Jarman)
(Janet Jarman)
(Janet Jarman)*For more of Janet Jarman's work, visit her website and Instagram.*Editor's note: This article originally inaccurately characterized the duration of Jarman's career, and the ages and origins of various coffee farmers. It has since been corrected. We regret the errors.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kelly Gonsalves is a sex and culture writer exploring love, lust, identity, and feminism. Her work has appeared at Bustle, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and more, and she previously worked as an associate editor for The Week. She's obsessed with badass ladies doing badass things, wellness movements, and very bad rom-coms.
-
'Make legal immigration a more plausible option'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
LA-to-Las Vegas high-speed rail line breaks ground
Speed Read The railway will be ready as soon as 2028
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel's military intelligence chief resigns
Speed Read Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva is the first leader to quit for failing to prevent the Hamas attack in October
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Nigeria's worsening rate of maternal mortality
Under the radar Economic crisis is making hospitals unaffordable, with women increasingly not receiving the care they need
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and early
Speed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How happy is Finland really?
Today's Big Question Nordic nation tops global happiness survey for seventh year in a row with 'focus on contentment over joy'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
How Tehran became the world's nose job capital
Under the radar Iranian doctors raise alarm over low costs, weak regulation and online influence of 'Western beauty standards'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Africa's renewed battle against female genital mutilation
Under the radar Campaigners call for ban in Sierra Leone after deaths of three girls as coast-to-coast convoy prepares to depart
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Argentina: the therapy capital of the world
Under the radar Buenos Aires natives go hungry to pay for psychoanalysis, amid growing instability, anxiety – and societal acceptance
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Does declining birth rate spell doom for Britain?
Today's Big Question Ageing population puts pressure on welfare state, economy and fabric of society, while fertility is rising on populist agendas
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
How a new blood test could revolutionise sepsis diagnosis
The Explainer Early results from ongoing trial suggest faster identification of deadly condition is possible
By The Week Staff Published