When Greek coffee farmer Dimitrios Christopoulos arrived in Colombia a few years ago, he knew nothing about coffee production. Today, atop a mountain deep in the Colombian jungle on a pole on top of a humble villa, a Greek flag flutters in the breeze along with the Colombian flag.
The villa, overlooking the coffee plantations which spread out below it as far the eye can see, belongs to Dimitrios Christopoulos, a Greek immigrant. The enterprising and indefatigable Greek is the founder of his own coffee-production farm, Finca El Diamante, outside the remote village of Garzón in the Huila prefecture of Colombia.
Christopoulos, who is married to Colombian Marlene Colmenares, is the only known Greek coffee producer in the world. Speaking recently to Greek Reporter, he related: “I firstly fell in love with my wife and then with coffee…We met in Greece when my wife came on vacation. Eventually, she ‘imported’ me to Colombia.”
The Greek coffee grower explained that, when he arrived to Colombia, he thought of coffee production more as just a hobby. Things gradually changed, however, and he became such a successful coffee producer that he not only cultivated his own variety of coffee beans but trained local farmers to produce high-quality coffee as well.
Garzon, located in the center of the Colombian department of Huila, about 450 kilometers (280 miles) south of the Colombian capital of Bogotá, is known as a region where some of the best coffee is grown and produced globally.
The Greek coffee grower of Colombia
Christopoulos admitted that producing coffee is not an easy job. “From six in the morning until six in the evening, we are at work…There is little time left for fun and relaxation.” He explained that the price of coffee has fallen, and people are now struggling to make a living in the business.
“Multinational companies are striving to buy the product at very low prices and sell high…They want Colombians to remain slaves because some want to make lots of money,” he said.
Christopoulos was helping to organize coffee producers into a co-op, which will then export their product directly into foreign markets rather than relying on multinational companies and middlemen. “Our motto here, is: strength in union,” the Greek immigrant told Greek Reporter.
“I have earned the nickname of ‘patron’ because I am trying to help farmers make a decent living,” he revealed with pride.
