the export of the cooperative's coffee. This coffee was named "Cafe Rico" and was well received locally and internationally, soon reestablishing the good fame of Puerto Rico's coffee worldwide. The cooperative became the first coffee manufacturer to sell its coffee in sealed cans. The quality of Cafe Rico has received numerous medals and recognition in contests celebrated all over the world. Colón established the only coffee tasting laboratory in Puerto Rico. One of Cafe Rico's byproducts, "San Carlos Selection", is the official coffee of Vatican City. Cooperative expansion Under Colon's leadership, the cooperative was able to expand and diversify. The company sells food and agricultural equipment with sales of over $5 million. It also owns and operates an egg processing company which calls its product "Huevos Rico" (Rico Eggs). The cooperative owns an insurance company, its own credit corporation that grants loans to farmers, and its own printing plant that prints and distributes an agricultural magazine worldwide. Recently, the cooperative has started to operate gasoline stations in San Juan, Mayaguez and Ponce. When Colón took over the company in 1932 as a general manager the cooperative had only $284,000 in annual sales. By 1963 the cooperative had over $35,000,000 in sales. The cooperative has offices and warehouses in Ponce (main offices), San Juan, Mayagüez, Arecibo, Yauco, San Sebastian, Utuado, Adjuntas, Jayuya and Ciales. Legacy Colón served as a senator, representing the district of Ponce in the Puerto Rican Senate and was named Administrator of the cooperative, a position he held until his retirement in 1965. In 1952 the Constitution of Puerto Rico was adopted, creating the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and Colón was a member of the Constitutional Convention of Puerto Rico. He was a delegate to Republican National Convention from Puerto Rico in the years 1948, 1952 and 1956. Ramiro L. Colón was candidate for governor in 1968 for the Republican Statehood Party. Ramiro L. Colón died in the city of Ponce, which honored his memory by naming an elementary school after him. He is remembered as the man who saved the Puerto Rican coffee industry. See also List of Puerto Ricans Notes References External links Company History 1904 births 1983 deaths 20th-century Puerto Rican businesspeople Businesspeople from Ponce Cooperative organizers