Traditionally made agave spirits are, by and large, more expensive than spirits made using machines. And a part of that expense is certainly attributable to the greater efficiencies realized through those machines. But another contributing factor of the expense that doesn’t get talked about very frequently is the physical toll these pre-industrial methods can take on the families who carry on the traditions.

When you’re using wood to fuel your fire, smoke gets in your lungs, in your eyes, and can cause cancer. When you’re using sharp, steel coas and machetes to cut agave, a slip can cost a finger, a toe, a hand, or a foot. The backbreaking work of milling agave by hand can literally be backbreaking — can lead to herniated discs. 

In recent years SACRED has received increasing requests to help underwrite healthcare for these families. Medical care in Mexico is socialized, but … that care doesn’t always arrive in a timely manner. Delays in chemo treatments can literally be the difference between life and death. And so many of these families are so far from the hospitals that offer the treatments that the expenses associated with getting to the healthcare — getting housing and food near the healthcare — can make it impossible for some to participate.

The families who choose to maintain the multi-generational wisdom are our heroes. Their worldview is, we believe, going to eventually inform society’s approach to solving problems like climate change, food insecurity, and water insecurity. So SACRED doesn’t speak of specific calls to action for supporting the families seeking healthcare donations. We don’t want to position our individual heroes as charity cases. So if this is a cause you care about, make a donation. If you want to know about specific cases, email us. We’ll tell you what healthcare cases we’re fundraising for at the moment — without naming names. And we’ll thank you for helping us help these families.