Alta Verapaz is a department in central Guatemala, with its capital in Cobán. All of Guatemala was at one point a part of the Maya civilization, including the Alta Verapaz region, and most of the area's residents are still part of one of the surviving groups and primarily speak their native language rather than Spanish. The majority of the fine flavor cacao exported from Guatemala comes from the tropical jungles of the Alta Verapaz region via Cacao Verapaz, a specialty cacao exporter based in Cobán, and focused on working with indigenous communities to preserve their native cacao varietals.

The remote Guatemalan village of San Juan Chivite is perched on the side of a mountain, reachable only by foot. Part of the journey requires crossing a long, narrow wooden and steel cable footbridge across which all harvested cacao is carried by hand for export. Before the Guatemalan Civil War, the entire village was part of a coffee farm, but following the war it ended up in the hands of 64 indigenous Maya families who’d been displaced during the conflict. In 2002 they switched entirely to farming cacao, and these days there are 125 families living in San Juan Chivite, all of whom are descendants of the original 64 families. Cacao cultivation remains the source of over 90% of the community’s income, and with new fermentation & drying facilities, their cacao is well worth the premium it’s now earning in partnership with Cacao Verapaz.