Overview
Altitude Range: 1500 – 2200 MASL
Language Spoken: Amharic
Harvest: November – February
Annual Coffee Production: 6,600,000 bags (Crop 2013)
Common Varieties: Arabica, native heirloom varieties.
Avg Farm Size: In general, small plantations.
General Cup Profile
Ethiopia is the birthplace of Arabica coffee, and is home to some of the most diverse varieties on the planet. Due to this the cup profile can vary drastically, but certain regions produce coffees which are distinctive. Yirgacheffe is traditionally known for its perfumey jasmine, floral, and citrusy characteristics. Naturally processed coffees from Yirgacheffe have proved themselves to be an amazing alternative to the traditional offerings from Harrar and Sidama. The cup profile is the beautiful simplicity of Yirgacheffe with strawberries and cream thrown in the mix, while Harrar/Sidama is known to be clasically more jammy and wild with a distinct blueberry note.
Growing Regions
Sidama
Located in the south of Ethiopia, the Sidama region offers great-quality coffee. Sidama’s coffees have lemon-citric tones with bright acidity. “Ethiopia Sidama” is a type of Arabica coffee grown in the Sidama Province of Ethiopia. Sidama coffee includes Yirgacheffe Coffee and Guji Coffee.
Yirgacheffe: Located in central southern Ethiopia, Yirgacheffe is a small area within the Sidama region which is famous for its coffee quality.
Harrar
Dry, hot, and desert climates are the characteristics of this region, yet the coffee is very unique in taste. “Ethiopian Harrar” is an Arabica variety that is grown in the region of Harrar located in the Eastern highlands. It is one of the oldest coffee types produced in the world. The coffee is washed and sun dried. When the drying process is finished, they hand process the parchment coffee in order to obtain the best quality.
Limu and Djimmah
Western Ethiopia: Coffee is processed in two methods here: “Limu” stands for washed coffee, and “Djimmah” stands for natural process.
Lekempti, Wellega, and Gimbi
Western Ethiopia: This area has a much different profile than the traditional washed Yirgacheffe. We see a generally much sweeter cup with less distinctive delicate citric acidity, and more big sweet stone fruit.
Processing
Washed and natural.
Unique Systems
Ethiopian Commodities Exchange
The ECX was started in 2008 to help protect farmers from market forces that might prevent them from making a living. Bumper crops often lead to big price drops, which can make it unprofitable for farmers to harvest their coffee. What the ECX does is commoditize grains—including sesame, beans, maize, wheat, and, most importantly, coffee. This ensures prompt payment to farmers. It also integrates all parts of the “ecosystem” involved in a grains market, including warehousing, grading, trading, and payment. Access to information is emphasized, as farmers can obtain information about trading prices and local delivery points easily through dedicated telephone lines.
Here is a general rundown of how the ECX chain works in Ethiopia:
Farmers deliver cherry to local wet mills. Some wet mills pay a premium for better-quality cherry, some do not.
The wet mill then delivers parchment coffee to a delivery station warehouse. In Yirgacheffe, this delivery station is in Dila.
Coffees are labeled with a region, and then are graded based both on physical qualities as well as cup quality. Higher-quality coffee fetches a higher price.
An exporter then purchases the coffee through the ECX. The coffee that this exporter purchases will, at most, be labeled as “Yirgacheffe: Konga” or “Sidama: Borena.”
Once a specific lot is purchased, it is then shipped to the buyer (typically an exporter in Ethiopia).
While this system does ensure prompt payment and streamlines supply chain issues, it removes essentially all traceability from the coffee. This is problematic in the specialty world, where traceability is paramount.
The ECX does not allow for complete traceability, but coffee cooperatives in Ethiopia do have the ability to go around the ECX and export the coffee themselves. Coffees that are exported by a cooperative can have traceability, possibly even to a single farmer.
Cooperatives
Sigiga Cooperative (1600–2500 masl):
District: Kochere
Members: 1,862
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT, UTZ and Organic
Finchewan Cooperative (1450–2000 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 1,271
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Konga Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 1,556
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Hafursa Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 1,975
Estimated green-coffee production: 798,000 kg
Average Farm Size: Up to 4 hectares, with an estimated volume of 600 kg/ha.
The organization owns the washing station
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Resa Cooperative (1000-1400 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 2,719
Two processing units are available in the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Addis Katema (1000–1400 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 891
The washing station is own by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Biloya Cooperative (1600–2500 masl):
District: Kochere
Members: 1,203
Two available processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Worka Cooperative (1650–2700 masl):
District: Gebed
Members: 305
Estimated green-coffee production: 457,000 kg
Average Farm Size: Up to 4 hectares with an estimated volume of 699 kg/ha.
The processing unit is owned by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Koke Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yigarcheffe
Members: 828, and 1 processing unit
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT, UTZ and Organic
Hama Cooperative (1600–2500 masl):
District: Kochere
Members: 1,505, and 1 processing unit
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Chichu Cooperative (1410–2000 masl):
District: Dila
Members: 1,675
Average Farm Size: Up to 4 hectares with an estimated volume of 591 kg/ha
The processing unit is owned by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red Brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Michile Cooperative (1410–2000 masl):
District: Dila
Members: 1,206
Average Farm Size: Up to hectares with an estimated volume of 592 kg/ha
The processing unit is owned by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red Brown soil
Certifications: FT, UTZ and Organic
Hase Haro Cooperative (1450–2000 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 1,519
Two processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Dumerso Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 246
Two processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Tumticha Cooperative (1410–2000 masl):
District: Dila
Members: 960
Two processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Aramo Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 2,254
Two processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Edido Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 1,044
One processing unit is available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Adame Cooperative (1000–1400 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 533
One processing unit is available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Belekara Cooperative (1000–1400 masl):
District: Wenago
Members: 685
One processing unit is available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Dama Cooperative (1410–2000 masl):
District: Dila
Members: 1,957
Two processing units are available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Adado Cooperative (1200–1700 masl):
District: Bule
Members: 1,128
One processing unit is available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Haru Cooperative (1750–2300 masl):
District: Yirgacheffe
Members: 1,187
One processing unit is available at the location
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Bankodhadhato; N/A data
Chichu Cooperative (1410–2000 masl):
District: Dila
Members: 1,675
Average Farm Size: Up to 4 hectares with an estimated volume of 591 kg/ha
The processing unit is owned by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Worka Cooperative (1650–2700 masl):
District: Gebeb
Members: 305
Average Farm Size: Up to 4 hectares with an estimated volume of 599 kg/ha
The processing unit is owned by the cooperative
Soil characteristics: Red brown soil
Certifications: FT and Organic
Michel cooperative: N/A data