Thursday, January 12, 2012

Day 9

Hola! Today we ventured from the Karahe Hotel in Manuel Antonio to the Orquideas Hotel 30 minutes outside of San Jose. We began our trip around 9 AM and stopped at 11:15 at a local market Don Elias on the side of the road. We were able to enjoy the local fresh fruit, candies, and nuts. After that quick stop, we headed to lunch at the La Fiesta Del Maiz (The Corn Party). Many of us enjoyed arroz con pollo (chicken with rice) and corn on the cob. Following lunch, we then drove to Dos Pinos Milk Cooperative.

We arrived at Dos Pinos at around 1:30. There we met Lauren Bonilla, the director of human relations, and her translator Jose because she did not speak English well. Dos Pinos is a cooperative company that buys products from small to medium sized farms that do not have the resources to properly sell on their own. Dos Pinos then resells what they had bought. Currently, they have 1,800 partners, 545 different products, and is involved with 1,500 dairy farms. They receive 1,300,000 kilos of milk everyday by trucks that hold 30,000 kilos of milk. This company is 65 years old and is today the number 1 seller of milk products in Latin America. To remain sure they are selling high quality milk, Dos Pinos has a strict set of guidelines that the producers and farmers must follow in order to provide the best quality of milk.

Dos Pinos makes up for their impact on the environment by taking the long life packaging used for milk and try to reuse it by making roofs and desks for schools and other organizations. In addition, they use recylced products for garbage cans and other items in the office. At the end of the visit, we received free ice cream and a stuffed cow named Lula!
We have arrived at the hotel a few hours ago. It is a very beautiful hotel and there are a lot of great activities coming up soon including Phelps Dodge and Doka Coffee tomorrow. Hasta Luego!


By, Bryan Menduke and Hayley Milner. Class of 2014!

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