Producers

Maya Vinic

indigenous small-producer cooperative · organic honey producer · coffee producer · cacao producer

Acteal, Chenalhó, Chiapas, Mexico

Maya Vinic is an Indigenous producer cooperative with historical ties to Las Abejas in the Chiapas Highlands. It markets coffee, honey, and cacao, including organic multifloral honey. Its member-based beekeeping work spans several municipalities in Chiapas.

From Acteal, Chenalhó, Chiapas, Mexico Honey Chronicles
Role indigenous small-producer cooperative, organic honey producer, coffee producer
Based in Acteal, Chenalhó, Chiapas, Mexico

About the Producer

A little history

Maya Vinic grew out of the civil-society organization Las Abejas. The cooperative dates its founding decision to 30 July 1999, when it began as a coffee cooperative in response to unfavorable prices from intermediaries. Research places its legal formation in 1999 and dates its beekeeping line to about six years later; organic honey sales began in 2005.

How They Work

Beekeeping in practice

Maya Vinic is a member-based rural producer cooperative that organizes production, processing, and distribution. It began with coffee and later expanded into honey and cacao. Its beekeeping line brings small-scale Indigenous producers together to strengthen their position, with the aim of fair prices and shared economic benefit.

Where They Work

Location and reach

World North America Mexico

Producer Base

Acteal, Chenalhó, Chiapas, Mexico

The cooperative’s headquarters was documented in Acteal during a 2016–2017 academic study; an industry association likewise lists the cooperative in Acteal, Chenalhó.

Apiary Or Forage

Chenalhó, Pantelhó, Chalchihuitán, Oxchuc, Ocosingo, Simojovel, Salto de Agua, and Las Margaritas, Chiapas, Mexico

The 2016–2017 research records Maya Vinic beekeepers in 33 communities across these eight municipalities. This is evidence for the historical distribution of member apiculturists, not a product-specific origin claim for any current jar or lot.

Retail

San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico

Maya Vinic publicly lists central offices/shop on César Augusto Sandino 17 and a café at Hermanos Domínguez 11 in San Cristóbal de las Casas. These are commercial locations, not evidence of honey harvest origin.

Products & Specimens

What connects to this producer

Products listed by the Producer are kept separate from specimens held in the Collection.

Producer listing

Miel Multifloral

Floral source: Multifloral

Origin detail: Unknown

Maya Vinic’s product page calls this a liquid, certified-organic multifloral honey. The product-specific listing does not identify a harvest locality, municipality, region, or country of origin; its honey origin therefore must remain unassigned at product level.

Producer listing

Miel orgánica, 350 g glass jar

Origin detail: Unknown

The official homepage advertises an organic honey in a 350 g glass jar, but supplies no floral source or product-specific harvest geography.

People

People connected to the work

  • Lorenzo Gómez Guzmán Commercial contact / representative

Practices

How they work

  • The current multifloral honey listing is described by Maya Vinic as certified organic.
  • Published research documents organic-honey production and annual renewal of the cooperative’s organic certification during the study period; this is historical documentation and should not be treated as confirmation of present certification status without current certificate evidence.
  • Maya Vinic participated in a 2021–2025 initiative that introduced digital tools to improve traceability and internal management of honey collection.
Sources for this profile