Up until the mid-1990s, the sale of coffee accounted for a large majority of earnings for the 25,000 farm families living in Ecuador's Napo, Orellana, and Sucumbíos Provinces. Unfortunately, since 1995, the price of Robusta coffee, the variety cultivated in the Ecuadorian Amazon, has quickly declined. The refugees pouring out of Colombia have also affected the economy of this area as well as the dramatic drop in cross border commerce due to the Colombia conflict and the recent dollarization of Ecuador's economy. Dollarization puts small-scale Ecuadorian producers at an economic disadvantage in the short term because their production costs are higher than their neighbors are while the agricultural commodity prices remain the same. Many coffee farmers in Napo, Orellana, and Sucumbíos have chosen not to maintain their existing trees because the small amount of coffee they produce does not financially justify its harvest.

With few prospects of coffee prices recovering and the situation in Colombia deteriorating, farmers must begin cultivating and commercializing alternative crops with greater income potential and that are suitable to the delicate rainforest ecosystem. Cacao, because it is native to the Ecuadorian rainforest, is one of the few crops that grow well under the area's harsh conditions thus making it a viable alternative for the farmers. Knowing that increased production of cacao would only help the farmers if they could sell it at reasonable prices, FUNEDESIN created Yachana Gourmet, a commercial vehicle that buys cacao directly from rural producers, paying between 25% and 35% more than the intermediaries pay.

In order to help insure that the farmers will have continued financial stability, FUNEDESIN and Yachana Gourmet have been working to improve cacao production in the region, as well as invest in long-term agro-technical assistance for the farmers. FUNEDESIN and Yachana Gourmet have also worked to establish a network of village banks that give small family farmers access to much-needed credit. Yachana has also been working to open the US market to the cacao products produced in the region.

FUNEDESIN has also received assistance from many organizations that have allowed us to continue our work. Some of the largest contributors include the Ecuadorian Canadian Development Fund (FECD) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

FUNEDESIN, with the support of FECD, provides agro-technical assistance to 1,225 rural farm families living in the Napo and Sucumbíos Provinces. Our agricultural extension agents teach the farmers sustainable agricultural and land management techniques. By implementing innovative farming methods adapted to rainforest conditions, we are helping to improve the management of the principal agricultural crops of the region, such as cacao (chocolate) and coffee. Helping farmers to better manage their existing farmland reduces the amount of rainforest they need to clear in order to generate the income they need to support their families.

Yachana Gourmet, with the help of the Rudolph Steiner Foundation was able to invest in its manufacturing infrastructure, purchase cacao from farmers and a Fair Trade price and have access to a revolving fund to cover early operational expenses.

With the help of a large grant given on September 16, 2003 from USAID, FUNEDESIN has been able to increase the commercialization of cacao in an effort to establish cacao as a viable alternative capable of forging a new economic reality for thousands of families in Ecuador 's Northern Border Provinces.