The town of La Yerba is a small community on the northern side of the San Juan Volcano. The community was originally founded under the name of El Astal, but in 1969 the town was relocated to border a highway as a newly formed Ejido and was named La Yerba.

An Ejido is a community comprised of communal lands designated for agricultural production. Each Ejidatario (joint land owner/farmer) has individual rights to a parcel of land or parcela, these rights can continue indefinitely and be passed on to their children, as long as the land is under consistent cultivation. With its ideology dating back to the calpulli system of the Aztecs, the Ejido system was established by the Mexican government in 1934.

ASTAL is located in the community of La Yerba, where the economy is based upon the annual harvest of its two most important crops— avocados and coffee. With one harvest immediately following the other, revenue is only generated for part of the year. By working with CAFESUMEX and San Cristobal, farmers receive a price adjustment four to six months after the harvest in accordance with the quality of their coffee. This comes at a very important time when farmer's economic options are limited.

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