The study aims to assess the entry of coffee producers into the specialty coffee segment that is differentiated by social and environmental attributes. It shows the experience of shaded coffee growers participating in the Projeto Café Ecológico, placed in the Baturité Mountains Environmental Protection Area, an Atlantic Forest region in Ceará State, Brazil. Emphasis is placed on horizontal and vertical strategic alliances among actors involved in the production, processing and distribution of ecological coffee. It highlights the articulation between government and NGOs, under both contractual and institutional approaches.