The Ethiopian Coffee Resource Site

The coffees of Ethiopia
Ethiopia's coffees are better and different. Most are essentially wild, with broad genetic and taste profile variety. Processing is done with pride and history, as all other coffees came from here and half of the final product is consumed domestically. As a central part of the culture and everyday life,  great care is taken in growing, harvest and processing--it's not just produced as a plantation monoculture export commodity as in other countries.  The varieties retain their unique tastes, tracing back to when Hailu Gebre Hiwot, after graduating brom Berkeley in the US, returned to search for new tastes. The unique identity of the beans he sent to Europe--without blending, as was common--is the Yirgacheffe coffee acknowledged today to be among the best in the world. Years later, he's the chairman of the Ethiopian Coffee Exporters Association.

tour of coffee sources organic producer tour Ethiopian coffee varieties coffee history and types

coffee trade history coffee global history coffee production types, farming and production

The path of coffee out of Ethiopia
Coffee's path from tree to table is complex. Berries gathered from forest tree-shaded wild bushes, farmers' gardens or plantations gets "wet" or "dry" processed by the producer or washing stations and eventually gets sold either at the official auction and sent abroad by traditional exporters--the  Ethiopian Coffee Exporters Association--or by unions of farmers' cooperatives that have won the right to export directly. Most Ethiopian coffee is inherently organic, and a growing variety of programs certify producers as forest-friendly, sustainable, organic and free-trade-compliant, resulting in a better price for the farmer.

Unions of cooperatives of coffee farmers in Ethiopia:

Kafa Forest Coffee  Farmers Union PO Box 83 Kafa, Ethiopia 251 (0) 47-3310790 Fax 251 (0) 47-3310847 website

Oromia Coffee Farmers  Cooperative Union PO Box 1394 Code 1110 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 251 (11) 550-6114 and 15 Fax  251(11) 550-6116 website temporarily down description

Sidama Coffee Union Kadisco Bldng- 3rd Fl. Debre Zeit Road PO Box 122062 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 251 (011) 440-7165 Fax 251 (011) 440- 7166 website     ...description

Yirgacheffe Coffee  Farmers Union PO Box 122641 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 251-1-43-1774/42-1613 Fax:  251-1-40-2533 website

Coffee geopolitical issues
Coffee is the second most traded commodity, after oil. Prices are volatile and affected by market demand, production, weather and international politics--and is crucial to farmers. As specialty coffee becomes more popular around the world, the high quality arabica Ethiopian coffees are in demand, but overproduction of lower-quality robusta varieties brings prices down. The many steps of coffee growing, harvest, processing, selling and shipping make te prices paid by raosters and consumers, and what portion the farmers get, very complex. Here are some study resources:

coffee details from trade to processing fair trade cooperative visit fair trade in Ethiopia update coffee poverty and fair trade overview fair trade details fair trade certification

Fair Trade Labelling Organization coffee sustainable agriculture white paper: analysis of fair trade ICO coffee strategy report to UN utz kapeh certification coffee economics - NPR audio

More about coffee
As you can see, from plant to cup, coffee is enormously complicated.  Is Ethiopian shade-growing of wild coffee better than plantation monocultures grown in the sun? Do they taste better? Is preservation of forest canopy important? Is it important to support small farmers producing unique coffees, and how does buying a cup of coffee help or hurt? Do large multinational corporations engage in mean-spirited practices--or do they create a market where millions buy coffee they might not have years ago? How do politics affect the lives of producers and consumers? Is caffeine addiction a corporate strategy? Is coffee dangerous, unfair or a pleasant, productive comfort that employs millions? Here are points of departure for your study voyage:
 

Coffee reference sources Wikipedia--coffee overview Coffeereview's reference dept. Coffee - the plant Ccoffee plant and chemistry Caffeine metabolism Caffeine amounts Decaffeination Why cafes aren't bars	Coffee news sources Badgett's coffee e-journal Tea and Coffee trade journal Ineedcoffee.com Google news: coffee Google news: Ethiopian coffee Google news: Ethiopian coffee ceremony
Coffee organizations International Coffee Organization Specialty Coffee Association of Europe Specialty Coffee Association of America East Africa Fine Coffees Association	Travelling to Ethiopia Wikipedia--Ethiopia World Travel Guide: Ethiopia Virtual Tourist on Ethiopia Lonely Planet on Ethiopia UN Ethiopian tourism site Ethiopia tourism commission

...back to home page.......the traditional ethiopian coffee ceremony