Ricardo Zelaya is a fourth-generation Guatemalan coffee farmer who has managed Finca Santa Clara in the Antigua Valley since 1988, with farming at 1,550–1,800 masl on volcanic soil. He oversees three farms in Antigua — Santa Clara, Hacienda Carmona, and Puerta Verde — and the Carrizalito farm in Nuevo Oriente, cultivating Bourbon, Caturra, and Catuaí under controlled shade. Santa Clara has won the Guatemala Cup of Excellence in 2001, 2009, and 2010, and Zelaya is recognized internationally for precision shade management and environmental stewardship.
